THE    APOSTLES    OF 
THE  SOUTHEAST 


By  FRANK  T.  BULLEN. 
The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast.    iamo. 

Cloth,  $1.50. 

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a  profound  interest  for  every  one  who  cares  for  tales  of 
the  sail  >r's  life,  and  for  every  one  who  holds  to  the 
brotherhood  of  man." 

The  Log  of  a  Sea- Waif. 

Being  Recollections  of  the  First  Four  Years  cfmy 
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Idylls  of  the  Sea.     izmo.    Cloth,  $1.25. 

"This  book  is  truly  fascinating  reading.  .  .  .  To 
everything  Mr.  Bullen  brings  enthusiasm,  a  passion 
for  accuracy,  and  the  good  writing  that  comes  of 
knowledge  and  sincerity." — London  Academy. 

The  Cruise  of  the  Cachalot.    Round  the 

World     after      .Sperm       Whales.      Illustrated. 
i2mo.     Cloth,  $1.50. 
Mr.  RUDYARD  KIPLING  writes  the  author : 

"  It  is  immense— there  is  no  oiher  word.  I've 
never  read  anything  that  equals  it  in  its  deep-sea 
wonder  and  mystery,  nor  c*o  I  think  tliat  any  book 
before  has  so  co-npletelv  covered  the  business  of 
whale-fishing,  and  at  the  same  time  eiven  such  real 
and  new  sea  pictures.  I  congiatulate  yon  most 
heartily.  It's  a  new  world  that  you've  opened  the 
door  to." 

D.  APPLETON  AND  COMPANY,  New  York. 


THE  APOSTLES  OF 
THE  SOUTHEAST 


BY 

FRANK    T.   BULLEN 

AUTHOR    OF 

"THE  CRUISE  OF  THE    '  CACHALOT,'  "     "  IDYLLS  OF  THE 
SEA,"    AND    "THE   LOG   OF  A  SEA   WAIF  " 


NEW    YORK 

D.      APPLE  TON     AND     COMPANY 
1901 


COPYRIGHT,  1901 
BY  FRANK  T.  BULLEN 


All  rights  reserved 


TO 

CONAN  DOYLE,  ESQ.,  M.  D., 

STANCHEST    OF    STALWART     FRIENDS, 

WHOSE   ENCOURAGEMENT 
LED   ME  TO   WRITE  THIS   BOOK. 


PREFACE 


IN  the  following  pages  it  has  been  my  earnest  en- 
deavour to  set  forth  under  fictitious  names  and  in 
places  which  do  not  really  exist  the  real  sayings  and 
doings  of  men  and  women  who  are  known  to  me  and 
with  whom  I  have  been  associated  for  many  years  in 
mission  work.  I  have  made  no  attempt  to  tell  a  sen- 
sational story. 

I  earnestly  hope  and  pray  that  out  of  the  telling  of 
my  story  some  good  may  come,  which  indeed  I  may 
say  without  arrogance  is  an  object  that  has  been  before 
me  in  all  that  I  have  ever  written. 

F.  T.  BULLEN. 
DULWICH,  July,  1901. 


Vll 


CONTENTS 


CHAPTER  PAGE 

I. THE    FIELD I 

II. — BEGINNING  OF  THE  CAMPAIGN 7 

III. — BREASTING  THE  TIDE 16 

IV. — THE   DAILY   ROUND 22 

V. — THE   PLEASURE   OF   SERVICE 3O 

VI. — A  SUNDAY  MORNING 40 

VII. — A  SUNDAY  EVENING 49 

VIII. — PREPARING  THE  SANCTUARY 62 

IX. — A  BUSY  WEEK 70 

X. — THE  FIRST  SUNDAY  IN  THE  NEW  HALL.    MORNING  81 
XI. — THE  FIRST  SUNDAY  IN  THE  NEW  HALL.    AFTER- 
NOON  AND   EVENING 94 

XII. — SAUL'S  DEPARTURE io7 

XIII. — THE   SEAL   OF   APOSTLESHIP 121 

XIV. — PROGRESS 135 

XV. — A   BAPTISMAL   SERVICE 148 

XVI. — GATHERING  CLOUDS 162 

XVII. — FAITH'S  OPPORTUNITY 176 

XVIII. — CALCUTTA  AND  HOME 190 

XIX. — CLOUDS  AND  SUNSHINE 202 

XX. — DEEPER  AND  DEEPER  STILL 216 

XXI. — SAUL'S  RETURN 230 

XXII. — A   CATASTROPHE   AT   THE   MISSION       ....  244 

ix 


The   Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

CHAPTER  PAGE 

XXIII. — A  BRIGHTER  DAY   DAWNS 2$8 

XXIV. — SAUL'S  WOOING  AND  WEDDING      ....    271 

XXV. — SAUL  DESCENDS  INTO   DARK  PLACES        .          .          .285 
XXVI. — THE  NIGHT  FALLS 299 

XXVII. — THE  MISSION  PROSPERS 314 

XXVIII. — SAUL  COMES  HOME  .......    329 

XXIX. — AND  LAST 343 


THE 
APOSTLES  OF  THE  SOUTHEAST 


CHAPTER   I 

THE    FIELD 

LUPIN  STREET,  Rotherhithe,  has  never  appealed  to 
the  fashionable  slum  visitor,  not  even  in  the  days  when 
slumming  was  in  the  height  of  favour  among  people 
in  search  of  a  new  sensation,  and  a  newly  discovered 
slum  was  immediately  overrun  with  fine  lady  and 
gentleman  visitors.  Indeed  there  are  grave  doubts 
whether  any  of  its  inhabitants  would  not  have  felt 
much  annoyed  at  such  a  name  being  given  to  the 
street  wherein  so  many  of  them  have  spent  their 
lives.  Several  of  the  courts  and  blind  alleys  leading 
out  of  it  and  ending  abruptly  in  greasy  fungus-clad 
walls — well,  there  could  be  no  doubt  about  their  being 
slums,  but  Lupin  Street — why,  Mrs.  Salmon,  the 
painter's  wife,  who  lived  at  No.  7,  was  quite  the  lady, 
and  her  three  daughters  were  as  well  dressed  and  well 
behaved  as  any  Blackheath  young  ladies.  The  pe- 
culiarity of  Lupin  Street  was  its  mixture  of  respectable 
and  decidedly  disrespectable  inhabitants.  The  houses, 
with  an  economy  on  the  part  of  the  builder  that  was 
painfully  evident,  were  bounded  sharply  by  the  pave- 
ment: you  stepped  out  of  the  front  door  on  to  the 


common  pathway  without  even  an  intervening  step. 
They  were  two-story  houses,  nominally  of  six  rooms, 
though  one  of  the  said  rooms  was  but  an  exaggerated 
cupboard  with  a  copper  in  it,  usually  known  among 
the  population  as  the  "  wash'us."  At  the  back  each 
house  was  provided  with  a  sort  of  gloomy  bin  which 
was  dignified  by  the  title  of  the  back  yard  and  some- 
times (by  mild  lunatics)  as  the  garden.  It  was  really 
about  ten  feet  square  with  walls  six  feet  high,  and  into 
it  fell  on  most  days  a  steady  fine  shower  of  "  blacks," 
which  made  all  washing  hung  out  therein  to  dry  to 
assume  a  speckled  grayish  colour  that  no  amount  of 
blue  could  ever  overcome. 

Yet  in  spite  of  the  drawbacks  incidental  to  living 
in  such  houses  and  in  such  a  neighbourhood,  of  which 
more  presently,  there  were  to  be  found  sprinkled  up 
and  down  Lupin  Street  houses  whose  tenants  would 
not  be  defeated  in  their  never-ending  warfare  against 
dirt  and  gloom.  Their  windows  were  clean  and  whole, 
the  curtains,  cheap  enough  in  all  conscience  (you  can 
get  a  very  good  curtaining  warranted  to  wash  at  least 
twice  at  the  local  draper's  for  a  penny-three  a  yard), 
were  always  white.  They  must  have  been  washed 
and  dried  indoors  to  keep  them  so.  Some  plants 
carefully  attended,  mostly  geraniums  and  fuchsias, 
formed  a  bright  background  to  the  windows,  and  hid 
the  interior  from  prying  eyes  whose  owners  thought 
nothing,  bless  you,  of  stopping  as  they  passed  and 
flattening  their  noses  against  the  panes.  The  front 
doors  of  these  houses  were  always  closed,  and  the 
threshold  was  as  white  as  hearthstone  (three  irregular 
fragments  a  penny)  lavishly  applied  every  morning 
could  make  it.  Inside  those  houses  the  same  deter- 
mined warfare  was  waged  against  grime  and  darkness. 

2 


The  Field 

The  threadbare  carpets  were  neatly  patched,  the  worn 
oil-cloth  was  kept  as  clean  as  soap  and  water  could 
make  it,  and  the  children  going  to  Board  school  always 
looked  as  nice  as  clean  pinafores  and  well-brushed  hair 
and  clean  boots  could  make  them. 

There  were  fifty-two  houses  in  Lupin  Street,  and 
out  of  them  all,  ten  were  thus  conspicuous  by  their 
cleanliness ;  the  other  forty-two  were  as  slummy  as 
possible.  Windows  begrimed  with  dirt,  broken  panes 
stuffed  with  nondescript  rags.  Street  doors  always 
wide  open,  with  a  frowsy  smell,  as  of  unaired  bedding 
and  dirty  cookery,  issuing  to  join  the  anything  but 
fresh  breezes  of  the  street.  These  tenants  were  a  hard 
crowd,  but  indifferently  honest — that  is,  there  were  no 
professional  thieves  among  them — keen-eyed  men 
with  bowler  hats  and  closely  buttoned  overcoats  never 
made  a  raid  upon  any  of  the  dirty  houses  and  emerged 
taking  with  them  furtive-looking  prisoners.  No,  dirty 
and  deplorable  as  the  street  undoubtedly  was  in  its 
general  aspect,  its  denizens  were  of  the  working  class, 
albeit  the  majority  of  them  worked  far  less  than  they 
loafed  around  the  "  Jack  o'  Newbury  "  just  round  the 
corner.  It  was  a  semi-nautical  neighbourhood.  From 
the  roofs  of  any  of  the  houses  the  masts  of  the  ships 
in  the  Surrey  Commercial  Docks  might  be  seen,  and 
a  very  short  walk  (if  you  knew  your  way)  would 
bring  you  to  the  riverside,  whence,  unless  you  were 
an  eager-  student  of  water-side  squalor,  you  would 
lose  no  time  in  departing  again. 

The  few  respectable  houses  in  the  street  were  in- 
habited by  men  who  had  fairly  regular  employment : 
two  riggers,  two  stevedores,  two  shipwrights,  a  sail- 
maker,  a  tug-boat  skipper,  a  painter,  and  a  sweep. 
And  strangely  enough,  this  little  company  of  hard- 

3 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

working  people  not  only  leavened  the  whole  of  Lupin 
Street  and  the  courts  adjacent  by  their  practice  of 
cleanliness,  but  they  also  supplied  its  religious  flavour. 
The  Salvation  Army  for  some  occult  reason  had  never 
found  favour  in  the  eyes  of  Lupin  Streeters.  The 
Established  Church  and  the  Roman  Catholic  chapel, 
both  buildings  but  a  very  short  walk  distant  from  the 
street,  never  found  one  of  its  inhabitants  among  their 
congregations,  and  the  Rev.  Andrew  Mack,  incumbent 
of  the  Established  Church,  put  down  Lupin  Street 
as  a  black  spot  where  religion  was  not,  and  the  people 
loved  to  have  it  so.  It  formed  a  special  item  in  a 
certain  bishop's  report  concerning  "  Godless  South 
London  " — that  report  that  was  so  fiercely  resented  by 
those  of  whom  it  was  written  as  an  evidence  of  the 
utter  ignorance  concerning  the  vast  number  of  sincere 
worshippers  outside  of  any  of  the  orthodox  folds. 

But  we  must  not  get  on  too  fast.  Be  it  known, 
therefore,  that  in  Wren  Alley,  a  blind  turning  half-way 
down  Lupin  Street,  there  had  at  one  time  been  a 
large  cowshed  and  stable  combined.  That  is,  the 
building  had  once  sheltered  cows  owned  by  an  enter- 
prising dairyman  in  the  High  Street  who  made  a  great 
parade  in  his  advertisements  and  big  letters  all  over 
his  shop  windows  of  his  vending  only  milk  from  his 
own  cows.  "  Fresh  milk  from  our  own  farm  twice 
daily."  The  unhappy  cows,  shut  up  in  that  loath- 
some shed,  where  the  light  of  day  hardly  penetrated, 
were  kept  in  a  state  of  semi-drunkenness  by  copious 
meals  of  tfrewers'  grains,  and  the  only  time  they  smelt 
the  fresh  air  was  when  they  would  no  longer  yield 
milk,  and  were  exchanged  for  other  hapless  ones.  At 
last  the  County  Council,  with  its  usual  meddlesome  in- 
terference with  an  honest  tradesman's  efforts  to  get  a 


The  Field 

livelihood,  decided  that  the  herding  of  cows  under 
such  conditions  was  filthy  and  unsanitary,  and  was, 
moreover,  a  direct  nursery  of  typhoid  and  tuberculosis 
germs.  So  they  ordered  the  dairy  farm  to  be  done 
away  with  entirely,  while  still  allowing  the  stable  to 
remain  in  use. 

Now,  Jemmy  Maskery,  the  respectable  sweep  of 
Lupin  Street,  was  not  only  a  hard-working  man,  he 
was  a  preacher  of  righteousness  and  a  practiser  thereof 
of  no  mean  order.  But  being  very  poor,  he  and  his 
fellow-worshippers  had  hitherto  been  driven  to  hold 
their  gospel  services  in  the  open  air  on  a  piece  of 
waste  ground  near  by,  a  sort  of  free  and  open  discus- 
sion forum  for  all  sorts  of  religious,  irreligious,  and 
social  questions  on  a  Sunday.  Their  own  private 
worship  had  been  conducted  in  Jemmy's  little  front 
parlour,  wherein  the  dozen  brethren  and  sisters  com- 
posing the  "  church  "  could  just  manage  to  squeeze 
themselves  with  a  good  deal  of  discomfort.  Not  that 
discomfort  ever  daunted  these  earnest  souls,  being 
their  normal  physical  condition ;  but  still,  being  thor- 
oughly practical  people  in  their  own  small  simple  way, 
they  were  ready  to  avail  themselves  of  any  opportunity 
that  presented  itself  of  improving  either  their  worldly 
or  spiritual  position  if  it  could  only  be  done  in  what 
they  considered  to  be  a  Christian  manner. 

Therefore,  when  Jemmy  heard  that  the  quondam 
cowshed  was  going  a-begging,  so  to  speak,  for  a 
nominal  rent  (£15  a  year),  a  bright  idea  took  possession 
of  him,  and  for  the  time  being  crowded  out  the  few 
others  that  he  usually  entertained.  It  was  nothing- 
less  than  the  acquirement  of  the  cowshed  as  a  "  hall  " 
wherein  the  brethren  might  not  only  hold  their  meet- 
ings for  worship,  but  where  they  might  gather  in  such 

5 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

as  should  be  saved  from  among  their  open-air  audi- 
ences. Where  they  might  in  winter,  when  the  in- 
clement weather  forbade  them  from  any  lengthy  hold- 
ing forth  on  the  common,  announce  to  the  world  that 
the  gospel  of  the  grace  of  God  should  be  preached 
under  cover. 


CHAPTER   II 

BEGINNING    OF   THE    CAMPAIGN 

HEEDLESS  of  the  fact  that  half  a  dozen  indignant 
householders  were  awaiting  him  next  morning  to  at- 
tend to  their  chimneys,  Jemmy,  with  the  clean  face 
which  he  usually  presented  on  Sundays  and  evenings 
only,  was  abnormally  busy  hunting  up  the  brethren 
and  sisters  wherever  they  might  be  found.  It  took 
some  little  time  when  he  did  find  them  to  infect  them 
with  his  own  enthusiasm  on  the  subject  of  a  hall,  for 
they  were  all,  like  himself,  obliged  to  look  at  both 
sides  of  a  penny  before  spending  it,  and  as  for  binding 
themselves  to  make  periodical  payments,  well,  they 
just  shuddered  at  the  idea.  But  Jemmy,  trained  in 
a  school  where  it  was  accounted  the  last  extremity  of 
folly  to  take  "  No  "  for  an  answer,  was  not  thus  to  be 
choked  off  his  pet  idea.  He  hammered  away  with 
smiling  and  voluble  perseverance  until  he  had  actually 
communicated  some  of  his  own  enthusiasm  to  the 
majority  of  the  brethren  and  all  the  sisters,  and  had 
won  from  them  a  staid  adherence  to  his  scheme  so 
far  as  it  came  within  the  narrow  compass  of  their 
means. 

Flushed  with  success,  he  had  not  noted  the  time — 
what  was  time  in  comparison  with  eternity,  that  roseate 
never-ending  future  to  which  he  and  all  his  co-workers 
looked  with  a  longing  only  heightened  each  day  by 

7 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

the  hopelessness  of  their  present  surroundings?  He 
strode  towards  his  home,  murmuring  softly  to  himself : 
"  They  shall  mount  up  on  wings  as  eagles,  they  shall 
run  and  not  be  weary,  they  shall  walk  and  not  faint." 
The  squalor  of  Lupin  Street  had  no  power  to  make 
him  miserable;  his  body  moved  therein,  but  he,  the 
inner  man  of  him,  was  uplifted,  for  the  time  supremely 
happy  in  his  vision. 

So  rapt  was  he  that  a  heavy  hand  smiting  him  on 
the  back  brought  him  down  to  common  things  with 
quite  a  jerk,  and  he  heard,  uncomprehendingly  at  first, 
a  cheery  voice  saying :  "  What  cheer,  Jemmy,  old 
man  ?  How's  things  ?  "  A  bearded,  stalwart  man  of 
about  thirty-five  with  a  fine  flavour  of  briny  freshness 
about  him  was  standing  by  his  side  with  outstretched 
hand  and  a  merry  twinkle  in  his  dark  eyes.  Knowing 
Jemmy  of  old,  he  was  not  surprised  at  the  dull,  just- 
awakened  look  on  the  worthy  sweep's  face.  It  quickly 
gave  place  to  a  wide  smile  of  glad  recognition  as  he 
said: 

"  Why,  Saul !  you're  actually  home  again,  glory 
be  to  God !  " 

"  Amen,"  said  the  seafarer  reverently,  "  th'  Lord's 
giv'  me  another  look  at  the  ole  show  an'  I  tell  ye  I  am 
glad  to  be  here.  But  how  is  it  y'  ain't  at  work  ?  " 

Jemmy  hooked  his  arm  into  Saul's,  and  knotting 
his  ten  grimy  fingers  over  it,  burst  out  into  his  ab- 
sorbing theme — the  conversion  of  the  cowshed  into 
a  sanctuary.  Saul  listened  intently,  and  as  soon  as 
Jemmy  paused  for  breath  he  burst  in  with: 

"  Why,  that's  what  I  call  a  great  scheme !  I'm  in 
it,  an'  don't  you  forget  it.  Looky  here,"  and  disen- 
gaging himself  with  a  jerk  from  Jemmy's  hampering 
arm,  he  lugged  out  a  little  canvas  bag,  the  contents 

8 


Beginning  of  the  Campaign 

of  which  jingled  musically.  "  Paid  off  this  mornin', 
see,  Jemmy,  'n  here's  my  thank-off erin'."  With 
which  words  he  counted  out  five  sovereigns  into 
Jemmy's  hand. 

"  Bless  the  Lord,  bless  the  Lord !  "  was  all  Jemmy 
could  say,  while  the  big  tears  rolled  down  from  beneath 
his  reddened  eyelids. 

"  There,  there ;  don'  take  on  so  'bout  a  little  thing 
like  that,"  murmured  Saul  shamefacedly ;  "  why,  wot 
is  it  'longside  o'  wot  I've  saved  since  I  found  the  Lord 
in  your  front  parlour  ?  Don't  say  no  more  about  it ; 
makes  me  feel  'shamed  o'  myself  fur  doin'  so  little. 
But  where  y'  goin'  now  ?  " 

"  I  wuz  just  a-goin'  'ome  w'en  you  stopped  me," 
answered  Jemmy,  "  fur  I'd  ben  out  all  the  mornin' 
stirrin'  up  th'  church  on  this  bizness,  'n  I  thought  I 
wuz  filled  right  up  with  joy,  but  you  comin'  on  me 
like  you  did  an'  doin'  wot  you  'ave  done — well,  I  c'd 
just  dance  like  David  did  afore  the  ark ;  my  cup's 
a-runnin'  over.  But  come  along  home  'n  have  some 
brekfuss  'long  o'  me.  I  ain't  'ad  none  yet." 

"  All  right,  Jemmy,  I'll  come,  but  /  don'  want  no 
brekfuss.  I  had  mine  an  hour  ago,"  said  Saul. 
"How's  the  missus,  an'  the  fam'ly?" 

"  Oh,  grand,  grand,  brother — that  is,  they  are  now. 
We've  'ad  a  goodish  bit  o'  illness  since  you  ben  away 
— w'y  it  must  be  twelve  months  and  more — and  I  'ad 
the  wife  in  'orspital  fur  a  couple  o'  months,  an' — but 
there,  God's  ben  very  good  to  me — we've  never  wanted 
fur  nothin' — our  bred's  ben  give  us  an'  our  water's 
ben  shore.  'Ad  to  be,  y'  know;  there's  th'  promise, 
ain't  it?" 

But  the  last  words  brought  the  pair  to  Jemmy's 
door  with  its  spotless  semicircle  of  white  hearthstone 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

described  on  the  pavement  from  door-post  to  door- 
post. Over  the  lintel  protruded  despondently  the  sign 
of  Jemmy's  profession — a  cylinder-headed  brush — 
not  at  a  fierce  angle  as  it  usually  is  in  such  cases, 
but,  in  consequence  of  the  attentions  paid  it  by  the 
youth  of  Lupin  Street,  dropping  out  of  the  horizontal. 

The  door  stood  wide  open,  revealing  a  dim  pas- 
sage— quite  dark,  in  fact,  against  the  hot  glare  of  morn- 
ing sun  that  was  ruthlessly  exposing  all  the  unlove- 
liness  of  Lupin  Street.  Carefully  stepping  over  the 
whitened  patch,  Jemmy  and  his  visitor  entered,  but 
their  feet  were  stayed  on  the  mat.  Midway  of  the 
short  passage  stood  Mrs.  Maskery,  a  plain-looking 
woman,  shapeless  of  figure,  but  spotlessly  clean  to  the 
last  observable  detail  of  her  poor  dress.  Her  sallow 
face  bore  an  expression  that  boded  no  good  for  some 
one,  and  as  she  got  full  view  of  her  husband  she 
lifted  up  her  voice,  the  long-pent-up  torrent  descend- 
ing upon  him  in  a  perfect  Niagara  of  bitter  words. 

"  You  lazy,  worthless  scoundrel,  you,  loafin'  about 
at  yer  fr'en's  'ouses  all  this  day  w'ile  yer  work's 
a-goin'  beggin'  fur  Jones  or  Wilkins  ter  pick  up. 
Yore  a  beauty,  you  are !  Call  yourself  a  Christian 
leader  of  a  misshun  an'  gaddin'  about  to  other  people's 
'ouses  ('at  don't  want  you  at  this  'our  of  the  day, 
remember  that)  an'  neglectin'  yer  family.  You  a-doin' 
God's  work  (with  infinite  scorn) !  doin'  the  devil's  work 
more  likely.  7  know  'oo's  work  yore  a-doin' — yore 
a-drivin'  me  down  t'  'ell  as  fast  as  ever  ye  can.  If 
it  wasn't  fur  the  good  children  I've  borne  yer  an' 
brought  up  for  ye  too,  little  as  ye  think  it,  we  sh'd 
all  starve.  I  carn't  do  more'n  I  do  keepin'  th'  'ome 
clean,  but  I'm  very  near  'avin'  enough  of  it,  so  I 
tell  yer." 

IO 


Beginning  of  the  Campaign 

She  paused  for  breath,  and  Jemmy,  seizing  his 
chance,  said  as  gaily  as  if  she  had  welcomed  him  with 
benedictions : 

"  W'y  looky  'ere,  ole  dear,  'ere's  Saul  Andrews 
come  t'  see  yer.  On'y  seems  like  larst  week  'e  went 
away,  does  it.  Don't  bother  about  any  brekfuss  fur 
me,  I  don't  feel  as  if  I  could  eat  any  this  mornin', 
an'  " — but  by  this  time  Mrs.  Maskery  had  recovered 
her  breath,  and  turning  from  her  conciliatory  husband 
to  Saul,  took  him  into  her  confidence. 

"  I  ain't  a-goin'  ter  say  as  I'm  sorry,  Saul,  fur 
givin'  'im  a  bit  o'  my  mind,  although  I'm  vexed  at 
upsettin'  you.  But  I  asks  you,  as  a  honest  man,  if 
a  feller  like  that  isn't  enough  to  drive  a  pore  woman 
inter  the  'sylum.  Every  'apenny  'e  brought  me  last 
week  wuz  fourteen  an'  tuppence,  an'  the  rent's  nine 
shillin's,  an'  there's  nine  of  us  t'  feed.  I  can't  go 
out  t'  work  an'  'e'll  'ardly  do  a  thing  now  but  mooch 
about,  jorin'  about  wot  'e  calls  Christer/zaznty,  an'  / 
calls  downright  loafin'  'ypocrisy." 

She  concluded  her  harangue  by  looking  appeal- 
ingly  at  Saul  for  confirmation  of  her  views,  at  the 
same  time  handing  him  in  after  her  drooping  hus- 
band to  the  front  parlour.  That  sanctuary  was  clean 
as  labour  could  make  it,  and  as  exquisitely  uncom- 
fortable as  an  utter  absence  of  all  ideas  about  making 
a  room  habitable  could  effect.  The  floor  was  covered 
by  a  cheap  oil-cloth,  a  rag  hearth-rug  stood  before 
the  Brunswick-blacked  fender,  a  bunch  of  Manilla 
fibre  decorated  the  cold  grate.  For  the  rest — a  rickety 
loo-table  covered  with  slippery  American  cloth,  and 
garnished  with  gaudy  books  placed  round  its  outer 
margin  at  regular  intervals,  a  horsehair-covered  sofa, 
looking  as  if  a  vindictive  antipathy  to  rest  was  woven 

II 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

into  its  very  substance,  half  a  dozen  angular  "  occa- 
sional chairs  "  primly  arranged  so  as  to  give  the  room 
an  appearance  of  being  really  furnished,  and  over  the 
backs  of  chairs  and  sofa  neatly  laid  snow-white  ob- 
longs of  crochet  work — antimacassars  by  courtesy — 
that  were  ready  to  slide  floorward  at  a  touch.  Over 
the  mantel-piece  hung  two  perfectly  atrocious  libels 
upon  Jemmy  and  his  wife — oil  paintings,  if  you  please 
— representing  that  worthy  pair  as  two  beings  of  an 
imbecility  beyond  description,  but  the  choicest  treas- 
ures of  the  household.  Around  the  other  walls  framed 
Christmas  supplements — framed,  that  is,  by  a  local 
tradesman  at  about  one  shilling  each,  and  looking  as  if 
they  were  all  that  money  too  dear. 

But  to  Jemmy  that  room  was  a  sacred  apartment, 
to  be  entered  only  with  a  sense  of  Sunday  upon  one. 
Upon  week-days  it  was  never  used  except  for  a  meet- 
ing on  Thursday  evening  or  when  Jemmy,  with  the 
last  vestige  of  soot  scalded  off  himself  (except,  indeed, 
that  which  still  ornamented  the  ends  of  his  finger 
nails)  and  a  spotless  white  shirt  on,  came  in  and  sat 
solemnly  down  to  the  table  to  make  certain  entries 
concerning  the  funds  of  the  church  within  a  black- 
covered  two-penny  memorandum  book.  And  that 
being  in  the  worthy  sweep's  eyes  a  sacred  function, 
did  not  in  the  least  alter  the  tabernacle-like  character 
of  his  best  parlour. 

Having  shown  her  guest  in,  Mrs.  Maskery  said 
with  a  significant  toss  of  the  head :  "  You'll  'ave  t' 
excuse  me,  Saul,  I  can't  afford  t'  eat  idle  bread,  if  'e 
can ;  an'  'sides,  there's  the  boys'  dinner  t'  get. — An' 
don't  you  forgit,"  turning  fiercely  to  her  husband,  "  'at 
there's  three  orders  in,  an'  you  ain't  tended  t'  one  of 
'em.  You  know  what  it'll  be,  don't  ye?  Wilkins, 

12 


Beginning  of  the  Campaign 

roun'  in  Jupe  Street,  '11  go  in  an'  do  'em  all,  an'  there's 
three  more  reg'lar  customers  gone  slap."  And  with 
this  parting  salute  she  flung  out  of  the  room,  slam- 
ming the  door  behind  her. 

"  An'  now,  Saul,"  said  Jemmy,  as  if  in  continua- 
tion of  a  conversation  that  had  only  just  been  mo- 
mentarily interrupted,  "  you  know  how,  afore  you  went 
away  to  the  Heast  Hinjies  this  voy'ge,  we  was  alwus 
a-strivin'  with  the  Lord  ter  let  us  git  inter  a  temple 
of  our  own  where  we  could  arsk  in  the  sinners  out 
er  the  rain  an'  the  cold.  Well,  some  o'  the  brethring 
do  seem  to  'ave  grown  lukewarm  in  this  matter, 
but  I  ben  a-believin'  for  it,  an',  praise  the  Lord,  it's 
almost  COME."  At  the  last  word  his  voice  rose  ec- 
statically, but  suddenly  remembering  how  near  to 
him  was  his  energetic  better  half,  he  dropped  his 
head  upon  his  hand  and  said  solemnly,  almost 
wearily : 

"  Saul,  my  son  in  the  faith,  I  know  how  you  love 
the  Lord's  work,  and  also  his  peepul ;  how  ever  since 
you  found  him  at  our  open-air  you've  ben  our  joy 
an'  crown.  I  ain't  got  no  fear  but  wot  you'll  'elp 
us  all  you  know  'ow  w'ile  you're  'ome.  But  we 
must  pray  in  faith  nothin'  doitbtin',  as  well  as  do 
all  he  shows  us  ter  do.  Let's  'ave  a  word  o'  pray'r 
now." 

And  without  further  preamble  Jemmy  dropped 
from  his  chair  to  his  knees,  followed  immediately  by 
the  sailor,  and  thus  raised  his  petition : 

"  Ho  Gord  hour  Farther,  thou  knowest  'ow  our 
'earts  is  set  on  'avin'  a  place  where  we  can  come  apart 
an'  rest  a  while ;  thou  knowest  'ow  'ard  it  is  in  our 
little  'omes  to  'ave  the  quiet  wusshup  we  wants,  the 
separatin'  of  ourselves  to  thee  for  the  breakin'  of  bread. 

13 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

An'  thou  knowest  too,  Lord,  'at  we  ain't  got  no  place 
to  bring  the  people  in  outer  the  'ighways  an'  'edges 
as  thou  'ast  kermanded.  But  we  do  believe — yes, 
Lord,  I  believe — glory  be  to  thy  'oly  name,  I  feels 
shore  'at  you're  a-goin'  ter  give  us  a  place  for  to  wus- 
shup  hin.  Let  it  be  soon,  ho  Gord,  let  it  be  soon !  We 
don't  care  wot  it  corsts  us — all  we've  got  ('tain't  much, 
thou  knowest,  Lord),  all  we've  got  an'  all  we  are  is 
thine. 

"  Bless  our  brother  'ere  'oo  you've  brort  'ome  to 
us  agen  over  the  mighty  hoshun  in  'ealth  an'  stren'th 
an'  love  of  thee.  Bless  'im,  ho  Lord,  an'  make  'im 
a  pillar  in  thy  'ouse  as  well  as  a  strengthener  an' 
cheerer-up  of  us  all.  Ho  Farther,  'ear  us  an'  arnser 
us  speederly,  fer  Jeesus  Christe's  sake.  Amen." 

Saul,  according  to  well-established  precedent, 
waited  silently  for  a  moment  or  two  after  his  hearty 
echo  of  Jemmy's  "  amen,"  and  then  in  his  turn  lifted 
up  his  voice : 

"  Dear  Friend  and  Father  God :  I  thank  you  with 
all  my  soul  for  bringin'  me  to  life.  I  was  dead,  an' 
worse  than  dead,  because  I  was  walkin'  about  doin' 
harm  to  everybody  I  come  in  contact  writh.  An'  you 
through  your  dear  Son,  put  out  your  hand  an'  touched 
me  as  you  did  the  leper.  You  brought  me  to  life, 
you  made  me  clean,  you  give  me  a  healthy  appetite, 
an'  now  I  only  live  by  the  life  you've  give  me.  All 
I  am  an'  all  I've  got  is  yours.  My  brother  Jemmy 
here  'as  a  heavy  load  laid  on  him,  but  you  know  its 
weight  to  a  hounce  an'  you'll  see  that  it's  carried 
right  to  the  journey's  end.  Stir  up  all  of  us  who 
know  an'  love  him  to  do  our  bit,  an'  what  we  can't 
do  we  know  you'll  make  up.  Grant  him  the  desire 
of  'is  'eart,  a  little  'ouse  where  we  shall  be  at  'ome 


Beginning  of  the  Campaign 

with  you  and  shut  out  from  the  hard  world.  Tell 
him  that  it's  all  right,  that  you  ain't  likely  to  let 
your  work  suffer  from  want  of  anything",  an'  let 
us  see  great  things.  Do,  Father,  for  Jesus'  sake. 
Amen." 


CHAPTER   III 

BREASTING   THE   TIDE 

THE  pair  rose  from  their  knees  with  faces  aglow 
as  men  who  do  not  merely  believe  in  orthodox  fashion 
the  truths  they  enunciate,  but  who  know,  with  a 
knowledge  that  is  proof  against  argument,  that  God 
is,  and  is  the  rewarder  of  those  who  diligently  seek 
him.  Jemmy  furtively  wiped  away  a  tear  with  the 
back  of  his  grimy  hand,  being,  like  all  men  who  live 
in  permanent  communication  with  the  Fountain  of 
Love,  of  a  very  tender  heart.  But  they  had  hardly  re- 
turned to  the  heavy  realities  of  every-day  life  when 
Mrs.  Maskery's  voice  was  heard  in  the  passage  volubly 
exchanging  words  with  some  caller.  Suddenly  she 
burst  into  the  room  with  countenance  aflame,  almost 
hissing :  "  You  lazy,  wuthless  beast,  'ere's  Mrs.  Wil- 
liams 'as  sent  'roun'  t'  say  'at  they've  ben  a-waitin'  fer 
ye  ever  sence  six  o'clock  this  mornin'  without  a  bit  o' 
fire  an'  all  the  place  in  a  huproar.  An'  you — an'  you  go 
prarncin'  aroun'  on  religious  business.  I  know  a  tex' 
about  him  as  won't  work  neither  sh'll  he  eat,  but  'tain't 
you  as  has  t'  go  without ;  many  a  good  feed  you  gets  as 
we  knows  nothin'  about  w'ile  we're  a-heatin'  stale 
bread  an'  drippin'  at  'ome  'ere,  or  a-suckin'  our  fingers 
like  the  bears.  Now,  are  ye  goin'  or  ain't  ye?  Wot 
shall  I  tell  the  little  gal  Williams  ?  " 

"  Course  I'll  go  at  once,"  cried  Jemmy,  making  a 
16 


Breasting  the  Tide 

grab  at  his  cap  as  he  sprang  to  his  feet,  but  his  wife 
interposing  her  sinewy  arm,  said  scornfully :  "  Yes,  but 
not  in  them  close,  ye  great  fathead.  It's  easy  to  see 
'at  you  don't  do  the  washin'  and  'at  you  get  th'  only 
decent  close  ye  have  got  give  ye.  Go  an'  change  'em 
an'  move  yerself.  I'll  tell  the  gel  you'll  be  roun'  there 
in  ten  minutes." 

Meekly  Jemmy  retired  upstairs,  and  Saul,  intensely 
amused  in  a  quiet  way,  resigned  himself  to  a  further 
exposition  by  Mrs.  Maskery  of  the  iniquities  of  her 
husband.  Yet  after  she  had  "  run  on "  for  a  few 
minutes,  she  suddenly  seemed  smitten  with  a  sense 
of  having  done  her  meek  spouse  an  injustice,  for 
leaning  forward  toward  the  listener,  she  said :  "  Ye 
know,  Saul,  if  he  has  got  aggravatin'  ways,  and  I'd 
like  to  know  who  dare  say  he  hasn't,  he's  a  good  man. 
I'm  sure  I  try  him  enough  with  my  tongue,  for  I 
haven't  got  a  bit  o'  patience  with  moony  people  that's 
got  so  full  of  the  next  world  that  they  forgets  to  do 
their  own  flesh  and  blood  justice  in  this.  But  when 
I'm  laid  by  and  feels  ready  to  fret  myself  to  death 
with  the  way  things  is  goin'  on  without  me  to  manage 
'em,  it  does  put  new  life  into  me  to  see  his  happy 
face,  as  nothing  seems  to  darken  for  more  than  a 
minute  or  two  at  a  time  'ceptin'  the  sut  'e  gets  on  it 
w'ile  'e's  at  work.  An'  I  feel  so  wicked  fur  naggin' 
him  as  I  do,  that  I'm  fit  to  break  my  heart."  And  a 
few  big  tears  rolled  silently  down  Mrs.  Maskery's  care- 
worn cheeks.  Wiping  them  away  with  her  apron,  and 
by  a  strong  effort  subduing  the  working  of  that  re- 
bellious mouth,  she  said  as  she  sprang  to  her  feet : 
"  There  'e  goes,"  and  rushing  out  into  the  passage 
as  he  passed  along  it  she  called  loudly :  "  An'  don't 
forget  the  Simmons's  chimbley  after  you're  done  the 

17 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

Williams's.  I  'spects,  though,  they've  got  tired  o' 
waitin'  for  ye  by  this  time,  if  they  haven't  had  Wilkins 
in  ter  do  it." 

But  the  few  last  words  were  lost  upon  Jemmy, 
who  was  half-way  up  Lupin  Street  at  his  peculiar 
shuffling  trot,  the  uneasy  gait  of  a  man  who  can  always 
feel  the  chill  or  damp  of  the  footway  in  contact  with  his 
bare  feet  through  the  vacancies  in  his  boot  soles.  He 
was  a  quaint  yet  pathetic  figure  when  equipped  for 
work.  He  always  wore  an  old  cloth  cap,  tight-fitting, 
with  a  downward  sloping  leathern  peak — a  cap  that 
had  served  him  so  long  and  faithfully  that  it  was  now 
as  shiny  as  a  piece  of  oiled  silk.  A  snuff-coloured 
neckerchief  was  tied  tightly  round  his  throat,  a  "  morn- 
ing "  coat  of  indefinite  antiquity  hung  angularly  about 
his  trunk,  and  his  trousers,  hung  up  with  string,  were 
two  cylinders  of  no  particular  shape.  On  his  left 
shoulder  he  bore  his  bundle  of  brass-ended  canes, 
which,  screwed  into  each  other,  enabled  him  to  reach 
the  summit  of  any  chimney  in  the  neighbourhood ;  in 
his  left  hand  he  grasped  a  few  fibres  of  the  circular- 
headed  brush  made  of  whalebone  that  he  screwed 
on  to  the  uppermost  joint  of  his  extending  machine, 
and  under  the  same  arm  he  carried  a  soot  sack  and  a 
hand  broom.  In  his  right  hand  he  bore  a  wide,  flat, 
short-handled  shovel.  Yet  in  spite  of  this  queer  dec- 
oration, in  spite  of  his  generally  disreputable  appear- 
ance, there  were  few  passers-by  who  did  not  give  him 
salutation  and  receive  in  exchange  his  cheery  good- 
day,  for  Jemmy  was  without  doubt  the  best-known 
character  in  the  neighbourhood.  As  he  was  wont  to 
say  in  the  open-air  meeting :  "  Bless  th'  Lawd,  who 
puts  'is  children  in  a  place  w'ere  they  feels  they  dassent 
go  wrong.  W'y  ef  I  was  to  do  anythin'  I  oughtn't 

18 


Breasting  the  Tide 

ter,  wouldn't  all  the  naybourhood  know  it  'fore  the 
next  mornin'  ?  Corse  they  wood !  " 

He  was  undoubtedly  right.  The  fierce  light  that 
beats  upon  a  throne  is  privacy  itself  compared  with 
the  blaze  of  publicity  in  which  such  a  man  as  Jemmy 
Maskery  lives  and  moves.  Normally,  a  man  or  woman 
may  live  their  life  in  London's  poor  streets  without 
not  merely  the  people  in  the  next  house  knowing  any- 
thing about  them,  but  even  the  people  in  the  next 
room.  But  when  a  man  or  woman  comes  boldly  out 
as  a  witness  for  God  and  his  truth  under  the  same 
circumstances,  every  action  of  their  lives  immediately 
becomes  a  matter  of  public  interest,  to  be  discussed 
with  the  most  minute  attention  to  detail  at  every  street 
corner,  on  every  doorstep,  over  every  public-house 
bar;  often  with  a  wealth  of  lurid  embellishment  when 
those  taking  part  in  the  discussion  are  what  they  are 
pleased  to  call  "  a  bit  on,"  otherwise  more  or  less 
drunk. 

But,  leaving  Jemmy  for  a  moment,  let  us  return 
to  Saul  and  Mrs.  Maskery.  The  conversation  mo- 
mentarily interrupted  by  the  passing  of  Jemmy  out 
into  the  street  was  resumed  with  some  difficulty,  for 
Mrs.  Maskery  could  not  help  feeling  how  the  acidity 
of  her  parting  remark  to  her  husband  had  largely  dis- 
counted the  sincerity  of  the  confession  she  had  just 
before  made  to  his  friend.  Moreover,  her  heart  smote 
her  severely  when  Saul  remarked  casually :  "  Poor  ole 
man,  'e's  gone  'athout  'is  breakfuss  after  all."  Im- 
mediately, in  self-justification,  Mrs.  Maskery's  voice 
took  on  a  razor-edge  as  she  exclaimed :  "  Yuss,  an' 
serve  'im  jolly  well  right  too.  Wot  business  'as  'e  t' 
expeck  me  to  'ave  'is  meals  on  the  table  waitin'  for 
'im  w'ile  'e's  a-jarntin'  roun'  a-not  mindin'  'is  work? 

19 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

An'  besides,  Saul,  t'  tell  y'  th'  truth,  I  'adn't  got  any- 
thin'  t'  give  'im  but  a  bit  o'  dry  bread.  I  told  'im  t'  see 
if  'e  couldn't  borry  a  shillin'  this  mornin'  so's  I  c'd 
git  somethin'  for  the  boys'  dinner  w'en  they  come  in, 
but  of  corse  'e  went  an'  forgot  all  about  it.  An'  unless 
I  go  an'  make  a  shillin'  on  somethin'  "  (pawn  some 
article)  "  them  pore  little  chaps  '11  'ave  t'  go  'ungry." 

Immediately  Saul's  sympathetic  hand  sought  his 
trousers  pocket  for  his  little  bag.  Extracting  a  sover- 
eign, he  laid  it  on  the  table,  saying :  "  'Ere,  ole  friend, 
don't  ever  want  for  a  meal  w'ile  I've  got  a  shillin', 
'r  else  you  an'  me  '11  fall  out.  I'd  no  idea  you  was 
bein'  pushed  like  this.  I  arsked  Jemmy  how  you  was 
all  a-gettin'  on,  an'  he  spoke  that  cheerful  like,  that 
I  thought  things  was  A  I,  although  I  guessed  you'd 
a-had  a  pretty  tough  time  of  it." 

"Jjfuss,  thet's  jest  like  'im,"  replied  Mrs.  Maskery. 
"  T'  ear  'im  tork,  anybody  'd  think  'at  there  never 
was  no  want  of  nothink  in  this  'ere  house,  as  if  he 
'ad  heggs  an'  bacon  for  brekfuss  every  morning  an' 
fried  sossiges  fur  supper  every  night.  But  I  think 
the  men  'er  all  alike.  If  they  earns  a  shillin'  or  two 
an'  brings  it  'ome  they  expex  it  t'  larst  a  year,  an' 
they're  quite  grieved  w'en  a  pore  woman  comes  an' 
arsks  of  'em  for  some  more.  They  can  spend  any 
amount  they  like  in  any  way  they  like ;  of  course  that's 
all  right,  but  their  wives — ar,  they  must  be  able  to  get 
'arf  a  crown's  wuth  o'  goods  for  every  tanner  they  lays 
out  or  else  they  drops  in  for  it.  'E  don't  earn  fifteen 
shillin'  a  week  on  a  haveridge,  an'  the  rent's  nine,  an' 
there's  six  on  us  ain't  bringin'  in  anythink,  although 
if  you  arskes  me  I  should  say  as  I  earns  the  mossel  o' 
food  I  eats  as  hardly  as  any  livin'  soul  in  Hengland. 
We  sh'd  starve  if  it  warn't  fur  the  boys'  money  as  they 

20 


Breasting  the  Tide 

gives  up  cheerful,  'ardly  keepin'  enough  out  of  it  to 
buy  decent  close  for  'emselves.  An'  all  'e  does  is  to 
moan  an'  groan  'at  they  won't  none  of  'em  come  to 
'is  meetin'.  I  ain't  got  no  patience  with  'im,  that  I 
ain't." 

"  Well,"  said  Saul,  rising,  "  I  got  ter  be  on  the 
move.  I've  a-kep'  you  talkin'  quite  long  enough,  but 
don't  you  forget  to  let  your  ole  frien'  know  when 
there's  a  southerly  wind  in  the  bread-barge  "  (when 
the  cupboard  is  getting  empty).  "  If  I  was  to  give  ye 
all  I  earn  I  couldn't  ever  pay  back  wot  I  owe  Jemmy. 
You  don't  see  it  in  the  same  light  as  I  do,  of  course, 
but  I  can't  forget  that  it  was  a-lissnin'  to  him 
a-preachin'  the  Word  that  set  me  free  from  the  dreadful 
misery  I  was  in.  God  bless  'im  an'  you  an'  the  kids 
an'  the  mission !  'Tain't  much  t'  help  with  a  little 
money  w'en  I  feel  as  if  I  could  die  for  'em.  So  long 
fur  th'  present,"  and  with  a  hearty  hand-shake  Saul 
passed  out  of  the  little  parlour  and  set  his  face  dock- 
ward. 


21 


CHAPTER   IV 

THE   DAILY   ROUND 

MEANWHILE  Jemmy  had  reached  his  destination,  a 
house  in  a  somewhat  superior  street,  whose  tenants 
were  a  little  inclined  to  patronize  Jemmy  from  the 
height  of  a  steady  income  of  two  guineas  a  week. 
They  were  chapel  people — Baptists — whose  proud 
consciousness  of  the  feat  they  had  performed,  and  were 
daily  performing,  of  living  respectably,  paying  their 
way,  and  holding  their  own  socially  with  people  pe- 
cuniarily far  above  them,  did  perhaps  as  much  to  nerve 
them  for  the  incessant  struggle  as  the  religion  that 
they  professed.  For  it  cannot  be  denied  that  there 
is  a  large  stratum  of  our  people  in  London  who, 
belonging  to  religious  bodies  professedly  excluding 
all  but  those  who  are  consciously  new  creatures,  have 
no  real  claim  to  be  considered  as  Christians  whatever ; 
always  assuming,  of  course,  that  a  Christian,  as  dis- 
tinguished from  a  professor  of  religion,  is  one  who  has 
fulfilled  the  essential  requirement  of  Christ  and  be- 
come born  again.  They  have  been  brought  up  in 
the  aroma  of  respectability,  from  earliest  childhood 
they  have  had  a  seat  in  the  chapel,  no  startling  sin  has 
ever  disturbed  their  level  lives,  and  thev  have  gradually 
developed  into  important  members  of  the  congregation 
without  having  once  asked  themselves  the  solemn 
question,  "Am  I  really  acquainted  with  God?"  Yet 

22 


The  Daily  Round 

notwithstanding  all  this,  such  people  are  a  power  for 
good.  Good  citizens,  good  parents,  good  examplars, 
how  shall  any  one  dare  to  cavil  at  them  for  their  lack 
of  spirituality?  Most  of  the  loss  is  their  own.  They 
feel  heavily  the  obligations  of  religion  without  enjoying 
its  consolations,  the  conscious  delights  that  are  summed 
up  in  the  personal  friendship  of  the  Son  of  God. 

Naturally,  and  very  properly,  too,  Mrs.  Williams, 
a  fair  example  of  this  class,  was  a  great  stickler  for 
punctuality,  the  accurate  performance  of  engagements 
made,  and  a  due  recognition  of  what  was  owing  to 
herself  and  her  husband  as  living  embodiments  of 
these  useful  virtues.  So  when  Jemmy,  panting  with 
his  haste,  appeared  at  her  door,  she  met  him  with  a 
countenance  expressive  of  the  most  severe  displeasure. 
Ostentatiously  rubbing  his  decrepit  shoes  upon  the 
door-mat  until  the  soles  of  his  feet  burned  again,  he 
said  hurriedly :  "  Good-mornin',  Misses  Willyums, 
thenkyer,  mum,  kindly.  I  'ardly  know  'ow  t'  erpoller- 
gize  fur  my  frightful  bad  memory.  I  clean  fergot  all 
about  your  order,  I  did  indeed.  Ye  see — "  But  lifting 
a  warning  hand,  Mrs.  Williams  froze  the  rushing  tor- 
rent of  his  eloquence  by  saying :  "  That  will  do,  Mr. 
Maskery.  Now  that  you  are  here,  p'raps  you'll  be 
good  enough  to  get  the  work  done  as  soon  as  possible. 
It  will  take  me  all  day  to  catch  up  with  my  work  owing 
to  the  way  you  have  served  me  this  morning." 
Meekly,  almost  cringingly,  Jemmy  replied  :  "  Yessum, 
cert'ny,  mum,"  following  with  bowed  head  as  she  led 
the  way  into  the  living-room,  where  all  had  been  ready 
for  his  operations  since  six  o'clock  that  morning. 
Down  went  his  bundle  of  canes  on  the  bare  boards 
with  a  crash,  the  keen  eye  of  the  housewife  noting 
with  utmost  displeasure  what  a  cloud  of  soot  arose 
3  23 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

from  them.  Hastily  unfolding  from  his  bag  a  tattered 
square  of  some  mysterious  material,  Jemmy  made  the 
time-honoured  request  for  a  couple  of  forks  where- 
with to  pin  it  up  at  the  corners  of  the  mantel-piece  in 
order  that  the  descending  soot  from  the  chimney 
should  not  fly  about  the  room.  Through  a  bordered 
hole  in  the  middle  of  this  tattered  screen,  Jemmy 
thrust  the  first  joint  of  his  machine,  and  after  a  brief 
struggle  amid  a  sooty  cloud  succeeded  in  screwing  on 
the  whalebone  head,  which  he  then  by  a  vigorous 
thrust  of  the  cane  pushed  up  the  chimney.  Mrs.  Wil- 
liams stood  looking  on,  her  face  dark  with  displeased 
anxiety.  Mentally  she  registered  a  resolve  that  this 
should  be  the  last  time  that  ever  Jemmy  should  defile 
her  apartments  by  his  clumsy  efforts  at  chimney  sweep- 
ing, for  it  must  be  most  reluctantly  admitted  that  the 
dear  little  man's  abilities  in  his  business  were  decidedly 
in  inverse  ratio  to  his  gifts  in  the  Gospel.  Fervent  in 
spirit  he  certainly  was,  serve  the  Lord  he  undoubtedly 
did  according  to  his  lights,  but  as  for  diligence  in  busi- 
ness or  skill  in  his  profession — well,  the  less  said  the 
better.  Yet  even  as  the  good  woman  watched  him 
at  work  and  groaned  over  the  task  of  cleansing  her 
furniture  that  he  was  piling  up  for  her,  she  felt  a  pull 
at  her  heart-strings.  He  was  so  poor.  As  he  knelt, 
she,  standing  behind  him,  saw  his  bare  toes  wriggling 
through  his  dilapidated  boot  soles,  noted  how  scantily 
his  body  filled  out  his  poor  garments,  and,  woman-like, 
felt  constrained  to  do  something  for  what  she  felt  to 
be  his  urgent  bodily  need.  So  she  left  him  to  pursue 
his  grimy  vocation  while  she  ransacked  her  tiny 
larder,  and,  stirring  up  the  fire,  made  ready  a  steam- 
ing cup  of  thick  cocoa. 

By  the  time  his  shilling  was  earned  she  had  pre- 
24 


The  Daily  Round 

pared  a  substantial  meal,  and  meeting  him  in  the  pas- 
sage as  he  was  about  to  deposit  his  begrimed  para- 
phernalia outside  in  the  gutter,  she  said  with  a  be- 
nevolent smile  :  "  Won't  you  have  a  mouthful  of  lunch, 
Mr.  Maskery?  It's  all  ready  for  you."  Now,  Jemmy 
had  long  passed  the  stage  of  false  pride;  besides,  his 
yearning  stomach  was  reminding  him  importunately 
that  since  his  supper  of  a  "  pennorth  an'  'aporth " 
(a  pennyworth  of  fried  fish  and  a  halfpennyworth  of 
fried  potatoes)  the  previous  evening,  his  healthy  ap- 
petite had  remained  unsolaced.  So,  with  a  futile  at- 
tempt to  dust  the  thick  of  the  soot  from  his  hands,  he 
followed  her  into  the  kitchen,  where  she  had  spread 
a  newspaper  over  a  Windsor-chair  for  his  reception. 
Gratefully  but  eagerly  he  attacked  the  food,  murmuring 
his  thanks  meanwhile,  along  with  such  scraps  of  in- 
formation about  his  pet  project  as  came  uppermost 
to  his  mind.  To  Mrs.  Williams  his  story  was  almost 
unintelligible.  The  idea  of  a  mere  hungry  sweep  con- 
cerning himself  about  the  building  of  a  sanctuary  for 
the  gathering  together  of  the  Lord's  people,  along 
with  such  as  should  be  saved,  while  his  own  affairs 
were  in  such  a  condition  that  he  was  evidently  hard 
put  to  it  to  obtain  food  for  his  family  and  himself, 
pointed  to  such  a  topsy-turvy  condition  of  things  as 
were  bewildering.  Yet  dimly  and  afar  off,  as  it  were, 
she  could  not  help  realizing  that  she  was  in  the  pres- 
ence of  a  rare  and  beautiful  soul,  shining  superior  to 
its  hampering,  disfiguring  environment.  In  some  non- 
expressible  way  she  was  aware  that  here  was  one  of 
God's  chosen  ones,  possessed  of  the  faith  that  removes 
mountains  and  bridges  oceans,  the  faith  that  refuses 
to  recognise  any  hindrance  to  God's  work  but  sin 
among  his  own  people. 

25 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

It  had  been  in  her  mind  to  read  him  a  small  lesson 
upon  minding  his  own  business  better,  to  reprove  him 
gently  for  his  forgetfulness  of  mundane  affairs,  but 
somehow  the  worldly-wise  remarks  would  not  come, 
and  when,  his  hunger  satisfied,  he  lay  back  in  his 
chair,  his  eyes  sparkling  with  enthusiasm,  and  told 
her  of  how  great  things  the  Lord  had  done  for  him, 
she  was  so  moved  that,  forgetting  her  own  household 
duties,  she  listened  spell-bound.  And  she  could  not 
help  contrasting  his  over-bubbling  fervour  with  the 
sleek  pomposity  of  certain  deacons  whom  she  knew, 
greatly  to  their  disadvantage. 

At  last,  with  a  sudden  start,  he  sprang  to  his  feet, 
saying  as  he  did  so :  "  Please  fergive  me,  Misses  Will- 
yums,  fur  hindrin'  ye  from  yer  work.  My  head's  so 
gallus  thick  I  k'n  only  think  o'  one  thing  at  a  time, 
an'  I'm  so  full  of  this  here  business  that  everythink 
else's  got  ter  take  a  back  seat.  The  Lord  bless  ye, 
mum,  an'  pay  ye  a  thousan'  times  fur  yer  kindness — " 
Her  uplifted  hand  stayed  his  thanks  until  she  produced 
half  a  crown  from  her  purse,  saying :  "  There,  Jemmy, 
there's  my  mite  toward  your  mission  hall.  It's  all 
I  can  afford,  but  I  give  it  with  a  good  heart,  and  I 
hope  the  Lord  will  accept  it  as  an  offering  made  in 
sincerity."  Big  tears  started  from  Jemmy's  eyes,  mak- 
ing queer  patches  upon  his  sooty  face  as  he  dashed 
them  away,  and  in  a  voice  broken  with  emotion  he 
cried  :  "  Praise  the  Lord,  praise  the  Lord !  Good-bye, 
sister,  good-bye.  He'll  reward  ye,  I  know."  Without 
another  word  he  made  a  dash  for  the  door  and  was 
gone,  his  heart  a  nest  of  singing  birds. 

He  was  half-way  down  the  street  before  the  long- 
suffering  Simmonses  were  recalled  to  his  mind,  making 
him  feel  guilty  and  downcast.  At  his  best  speed  he 

26 


The  Daily   Round 

made  for  the  house,  reaching  it  just  as  the  master 
thereof  arrived  from  the  dry  dock,  where  he  was  em- 
ployed, for  his  dinner.  Mrs.  Simmons  opened  the  door 
immediately,  having  observed  her  husband's  approach 
from  the  window,  and  seeing  Jemmy  standing  there, 
burst  out  with :  "  Well,  what  d'  you  want,  please  ?  " 
Jemmy  opened  his  mouth,  but  if  he  did  say  anything 
his  words  were  inaudible  in  consequence  of  the  heavy 
squall  of  vituperation  that  burst  upon  him.  For  Mrs. 
Simmons,  though  a  kind-hearted  woman  enough,  had 
an  incisive  tongue  and  a  hot  temper  behind  it — two 
qualifications  of  which  she  now  gave  Jemmy  the  full 
benefit.  It  would  be  an  ungrateful  task  to  record  her 
remarks  in  full,  bearing  as  they  did  a  close  family 
likeness  to  those  made  by  his  own  wife  earlier  in 
the  day.  Let  it  suffice  to  say  that  in  a  very  few  min- 
utes she  had  ruthlessly  laid  bare  all  his  sins  of  omission 
and  had  wound  up  by  saying :  "  An'  don't  you  think 
you'll  ever  get  another  order  from  me.  I  wouldn't  have 
ye  muckin'  my  place  up  was  it  ever  so — in  fac'  I  only 
had  y'  at  all  out  o'  charity  t'  yer  poor  wife  and  kids. 
Now  run  away  an'  play  with  your  toys,  y'  great  baby, 
an'  don't  you  ever  come  near  this  'ouse  agen." 

Poor  Jemmy  stood  under  this  verbal  douche  like 
a  man  in  a  dream,  his  usually  ready  tongue  stricken 
dumb  for  the  time.  But  the  slamming  of  the  door  in 
his  face  remarshalled  his  dazed  senses,  and  he  turned 
his  face  homeward.  He  had  only  reached  the  corner 
of  the  street,  however,  when  a  boy  rushed  up  to  him 
shouting,  "  O  Mr.  Maskery,  our  chimbley's  afire. 
I  was  just  a-running  t'  yore  house.  Come  along, 
mother's  in  such  a  way."  Off  they  rushed,  and  in 
less  than  five  minutes  arrived  at  the  house,  where  the 
poor  woman,  half  distracted  by  the  presence  of  a  ga- 

27 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

ping  crowd  outside  watching  the  thick  volumes  of  yel- 
low smoke,  tinged  with  red,  that  was  pouring  out  of 
the  chimney,  and  in  deadly  terror  lest  the  roaring  she 
could  hear  was  the  fire  spreading  from  the  soot  in  the 
chimney  to  the  building  itself,  was  in  a  pitiable  con- 
dition. Dashing  at  once  into  a  state  of  violent  activity, 
Jemmy  flew  from  room  to  room  closing  registers,  until 
he  climbed  out  upon  the  roof  and,  almost  stifled  by  the 
dense  smoke,  succeeded  in  binding  a  sack  tightly  over 
the  top  of  the  offending  chimney,  thus  effectually  stay- 
ing the  progress  of  the  fire,  much  to  the  dissatisfaction 
of  the  ragamuffins  outside,  who  seemed  to  consider 
that  they  had  been  cheated  out  of  a  spectacle  which 
was  their  right. 

Descending  to  the  kitchen,  scorched,  choking,  and 
weary,  Jemmy  found  the  mistress  of  the  house  almost 
in  a  state  of  collapse,  and  at  once  set  about  the  con- 
genial task  of  comforting  her.  Here  he  shone.  In  a 
very  short  time  her  cheerfulness  had  returned,  and 
she  was  filled  with  thankfulness  at  the  thought  that 
her  son  had  been  able  to  get  help  so  opportunely.  But 
when  she  timidly  asked  Jemmy  how  much  she  was 
in  his  debt,  he,  with  a  quick  appreciation  of  the  cir- 
cumstances, said  seriously :  "  Well,  Mrs.  Fitch,  the 
reg'lar  price  fur  puttin'  out  a  chimbley  is  arf-a-suvrin', 
but,  bless  yer  'art,  if  I  was  to  go  hinsistin'  on  my  rights 
alwus,  I  sh'd  feel  more  unworthy  of  all  the  Lord's 
blessin's  than  I  do.  Wot  can  y'  afford  ?  " 

"  O  Mr.  Maskery,  I'm  ashamed  t'  tell  you  that  I've 
only  got  eighteen-pence  in  the  'ouse,  but  if  you  could 
wait  till  Friday  night,  w'en  my  'usban'  gets  'is  wages, 
I'll  pay  y'  arf  a  crown  an'  be  very  thankful.  I  can't  pay 
any  more  than  that,  fur  'e's  onlv  earnin'  twenty-five 
shillin's  a  week  now,  an'  there's  five  of  us  in  fambly." 

28 


The  Daily  Round 

"  Looky  'ere,  Misses  Fitch,  don't  you  worry  about 
that,  you  pay  me  w'en  you  can.  I  shan't  lose  nothin', 
I  know.  Why,  bless  y'r  'art,  that's  what  the  Lord  does 
with  me  hevery  day  of  my  life.  I'm  alwus  a-gettin' 
in  his  debt,  I'm  alwus  'avin'  nothin'  to  pay  'im  with-; 
I'm  alwus  a-feelin'  as  if  I  wus  just  a  wuthless,  loafin' 
rascal  (an'  if  I  don't  'tain't  for  want  of  being  told  so, 
'specially  by  my  wife),  but  in  spite  of  all  that  he's 
ahvus  a-makin'  me  so  'appy  I  c'd  darnce  for  joy. 
Now  are  y'  shore  you're  all  right,  cawse  if  y'  are  I'll 
get  along  'ome.  Yes ;  well,  good  afternoon,  an'  Gawd 
bless  yer."  And  shouldering  his  impedimenta,  Jemmy 
resumed  his  peculiar  shuffling  trot,  heading  straight 
for  Lupin  Street. 

When  he  reached  his  home,  he  was  overjoyed  to 
find  waiting  at  his  door  a  big  van,  the  appearance  of 
which  told  him  at  once  that  a  most  welcome  replenish- 
ment of  his  exchequer  was  at  hand.  It  was  the  wagon 
of  a  soot  merchant  come  to  carry  Jemmy's  accumula- 
tion to  the  country.  And  although,  as  Jemmy  mourn- 
fully said,  "  Sut  ain't  wot  it  useter  be,  I  mind  w'en  they 
was  glad  ter  give  yer  five  and  six  shillin'  a  sack  for 
it,  an'  now  they  thinks  they're  a-doin'  y'r  a  faviour  if 
they  gives  y'  a  shillin'  a  sack,"  yet  knowing  that  he 
had  ten  sacks  stored  in  his  back  yard,  and  that  the 
money  was  always  forthcoming  on  the  spot,  he  felt 
constrained  to  utter  again,  with  great  fervour,  the 
melodious  words  that  were,  perhaps,  more  frequently 
on  his  lips  than  any  other :  "  Praise  the  Lord  for  he 
is  good,  for  his  mercy  endureth  forever." 


29 


CHAPTER  V 

THE   PLEASURE    OF    SERVICE 

SATURDAY  evening  in  all  the  poor  quarters  of  Lon- 
don is  a  time  of  tribulation,  of  hard  work,  of  much 
anxiety  for  the  great  majority  of  housewives.  For 
they  are  few  indeed  who  do  not  adhere  to  the  senseless, 
hateful  custom  of  leaving  all  the  residue  of  the  week's 
housework,  a  sort  of  special  preparation  for  Sunday, 
until  Saturday;  and  fewer  still  are  they  who  do  not 
leave  their  special  shopping  until  Saturday  afternoon 
and  evening,  even  if  they  have  had  the  gumption  to 
keep  their  other  work  up  to  date.  Employers  of  la- 
bour have  done  their  best  to  counteract  this  giant  evil 
of  late  Saturday  shopping  by  paying  wages  to  their 
work-people  on  Friday,  but,  like  the  vice  spoken  of  by 
the  poet,  it  has  at  last  been  embraced  by  its  victims. 
And  many  of  them  even  go  to  the  length  of  waiting 
until  the  wearied  shopkeeper  or  costermonger,  unable 
to  hold  his  or  her  poor  body  erect  any  longer,  makes 
a  move  to  cease  business  for  the  night,  or  rather  morn- 
ing, as  it  is  usually  well  after  midnight.  Then  do  these 
witlessly  cruel  ones  descend  upon  the  overborne 
tradesmen  in  the  hope  of  thereby  securing  a  bargain, 
and  keep  him  wearily  serving  pennyworths  of  this, 
that,  and  the  other  until  one  o'clock  A.  M. 

It  is  a  well-known  fact  that  the  slackest  time  for 
small  suburban  shopkeepers  is  between  ten  and  eleven- 

30 


The  Pleasure  of  Service 

thirty ;  after  the  latter  time  business  begins  to  freshen, 
and  is  usually  at  its  climax  about  midnight.  But  this 
is  not  the  worst  phase  of  the  senseless  cruelty  prac- 
tised by  the  poorer  classes  upon  shopkeepers.  In 
many  of  the  poor  quarters  of  London  it  has  become  a 
regular  practice  to  shop  on  Sunday  morning,  butchers 
and  green-grocers  being  the  tradesmen  chiefly  af- 
fected. And  this  is  the  veriest  wantonness.  It  is  the 
most  pitiless  oppression,  not  of  the  poor  by  the  rich, 
but  of  the  poor  by  the  poor.  I  know  full  well  that 
it  will  be  said  that  the  poor  women  doing  their  shop- 
ping at  these  times  are  not  to  blame  ;  that  it  is  the  fault 
of  the  husbands,  who,  as  soon  as  Saturday  morning's 
work  is  over,  line  the  public-house  bars,  and  do  not 
deliver  up  the  wretched  remnant  of  their  week's  wages 
to  their  waiting  wives  until  legally  ejected  from  the 
drinking  bars  at  midnight.  I  admit  the  truth  of  this  to 
a  certain  extent,  but  maintain  that  it  will  only  account 
for  about  twenty-five  per  cent  of  the  late  Saturday  and 
early  Sunday  shopping  that  is  carried  on.  If  in  all  the 
cases  where  there  is  no  need  for  it  this  cruel  system  of 
shopping  were  to  be  discontinued,  it  would  be  prac- 
tically put  an  end  to.  And  this  I  am  not  saying  from 
hearsay,  but  from  actual  observation  and  experience 
of  the  conditions. 

But,  it  may  be  asked,  what  has  this  serious  digres- 
sion to  do  with  the  present  story?  In  my  opinion 
much,  for  it  will  be  found  that  the  members  of  such 
little  conventicles  as  I  am  endeavouring  to  describe 
do  try  most  heartily  to  discountenance  the  practice, 
knowing  how  hardly  it  bears  upon  large  numbers  of 
their  fellow-citizens.  "  How,"  they  ask,  "  is  a  poor 
tradesman  who  is  on  his  feet  from  as  early  as  4  A.  M. 
till  the  following  morning  at  i  A.  M.,  to  summon  suf- 

31 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

ficient  energy  to  come  to  meeting  at  1 1  A.M.? 
How  can  any  man  or  woman,  compelled  to  crowd  the 
bulk  of  a  week's  work  into  one  long,  long  day  be  fit 
for  anything  else  on  Sunday  but  to  lie  in  bed  and 
rest  ?  "  So  they  usually  hold  a  little  prayer-meeting 
on  Saturday  evening  about  nine  o'clock,  whereunto 
the  bulk  of  the  members  gather  and  pray  for  grace  to 
use  the  Day  of  Rest  well,  for  strength  to  go  forth 
among  the  pleasure-seekers  and  holiday-makers  bear- 
ing the  glad  tidings  of  the  kingdom  of  God.  Many 
mistakes  are  made,  of  course,  much  wild  talk  is  in- 
dulged in,  many  libels  upon  the  character  of  our  loving 
Father  given  utterance  to,  but  let  it  be  gratefully  re- 
corded that  all  the  efforts  of  these  earnest,  simple  souls 
make  for  the  righteousness  that  exalteth  a  nation. 

So  at  the  close  of  that  ordinary  Saturday  Jemmy 
might  have  been  seen  sitting  in  state  at  his  own  table, 
his  big  Bible  open  before  him,  awaiting  the  coming  of 
the  brethren  and  sisters  and  hunting  up  a  "  portion  " 
while  so  doing.  Thoroughly  tired,  Mrs.  Maskery,  in 
the  next  room,  was  languidly  giving  the  final  touches 
to  the  poor  toilet  of  her  youngest  children  fresh  from 
their  Saturday  night  bath.  Her  Sunday  purchases  lay 
upon  the  table  by  her  side — six  pounds  of  flank  of  beef 
at  3-Jd  per  pound ;  two  huge  cabbages  at  three  half- 
pence each ;  ten  pounds  of  potatoes  at  three  pound 
a  penny ;  sundry  small  parcels  of  cheap  groceries ;  and 
a  bagful  of  oranges,  eighteen  for  fourpence.  She  did 
not  feel  disposed  to  join  in  the  exercises  presently  to 
be  engaged  in  by  her  husband  and  his  guests  in  the 
parlour,  although  she  had  a  distinct  feeling  of  pride  in 
being  their  hostess.  Had  she  been  able  to  express 
herself  she  would,  no  doubt,  have  said  that  "  to  labour 
was  to  pray,"  or  something  of  that  kind,  and  that  hav- 

32 


The  Pleasure  of  Service 

ing  made  ready  the  place  of  meeting  she  had  done 
her  part — all  that  could  reasonably  be  expected  of  her. 
First  to  arrive,  punctually  on  the  stroke  of  the  hour 
appointed,  were  the  painter  and  his  wife  from  No.  9. 
Pie  was  a  man  of  patriarchal  aspect,  having  a  high, 
dome-like  head,  a  pair  of  kindly,  rather  prominent  blue 
eyes,  and  a  long  white  beard  reaching  to  the  third  but- 
ton of  his  waistcoat.  He  was  neatly  clad  in  an  an- 
cient black  frock-coat  and  trousers  that  had  preserved 
their  sedate  air  of  respectability  through  many  years 
of  meetings,  for  which  purpose  alone  they  were 
donned.  In  his  speech  he  was  slightly  hesitating  and 
nervous,  usually  repeating  his  sentences  as  if  anxious 
to  assure  himself  that  he  had  been  heard,  and  he  was 
always  evidently  torn  with  the  conflict  between  his 
gentle,  loving  heart  and  the  stern,  merciless  Calvinism 
which  he  professed.  His  wife  was  a  feminine  dupli- 
cate of  himself,  with  all  his  virtues  accentuated.  She 
it  was  who  with  tenderest  words  hovered  about  the 
outskirts  of  the  open-air  meeting,  ready  to  press  home 
to  any  wistful  heart  the  words  of  love,  or  to  comfort 
any  frightened  soul  before  whose  mental  vision  had 
been  too  luridly  exhibited  the  eternal  torments  of 
the  damned,  a  practice  much  appreciated  by  these 
humble  brethren.  For  over  thirty  years  had  Mr.  and 
Mrs.  Salmon  trodden  the  rugged  ways  of  London  life 
together,  never  with  more  than  sufficient  for  their  im- 
mediate needs — that  is  to  say,  always  upon  intimate 
terms  with  real  poverty.  Yet  they  had  successfully 
reared  a  large  family,  all  of  whom  were  well  behaved 
and  most  creditable  to  their  upbringing,  while  the  two 
elder  girls  had  developed  into  modest  young  women 
who  would  have  graced  almost  any  station  in  life. 
But  beyond  and  above  all  this,  this  dear  couple  of 

33 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

hard-working  people  had  never  faltered  from  their 
consistent  following  of  Christ.  They  were,  in  a  word, 
eminent  Christians  in  the  true  sense,  although  out  of 
their  own  tiny  circle  utterly  unknown  to  the  great 
world  that  seethed  around  them.  I  speak  feelingly, 
for  Mrs.  Salmon  has  just  gone  to  her  reward,  and  I 
know  of  a  surety  that  many  a  man  mighty  in  learning, 
in  devoutness,  and  position  in  his  church,  will  here- 
after be  glad  if  haply  he  may  attain  to  a  place  by  her 
side. 

Five  more  members  followed :  The  tugboat  skip- 
per, a  broad,  red-faced  man,  bringing  in  with  him  a 
breezy  flavour  of  brine ;  his  meek  little  wife,  with  a 
wistful  look  in  her  eyes  and  her  head  always  just  a 
little  inclined  to  one  side,  as  if  she  were  listening  for 
her  husband's  steam-whistle  on  his  return ;  Saul  An- 
drews ;  Joseph  Jimson,  the  stevedore ;  and  Peter  Burn, 
the  rigger — all  of  them  possessing  characters  well 
worthy  of  analysis,  but  willing,  I  know,  to  await  their 
turn  until  later  on.  To  each  of  them  Jemmy  gave  a 
hearty  handshake  of  fellowship  and  a  beaming  smile 
as  he  motioned  them  to  a  seat.  When  it  appeared  as 
if  the  full  extent  of  that  evening's  congregation  had 
been  reached,  Jemmy  rose  and  said :  "  We  will  com- 
mence by  singin'  that  beautiful  hymn,  O  Jesus,  O 
Jesus,  how  Vast  Thy  Love  to  Me.  I  don't  know  the 
number,  but  some  brother  or  sister  please  give  it  out 
if  they  know  it."  Sister  Salmon,  who  was  the  "  mem- 
ory "  of  the  little  gathering,  immediately  supplied  the 
number — 68  in  the  Appendix — and  Jemmy,  with  a 
courteous  "  Thankee,  sister,"  turned  to  it  and  read  the 
first  verse.  Then  Saul,  who  was  "  shantyman  "  of  his 
ship,  being  possessed  of  a  tuneful  voice  and  a  good  ear 
for  music,  at  once  raised  the  tune. 

34 


The  Pleasure  of  Service 

A  musical  critic  would  have  pronounced  the  re- 
sultant strains  excruciating — Jemmy  with  his  high 
falsetto,  Brother  Salmon  with  his  devious  straying  into 
byways  of  discord,  and  Skipper  Stevens  with  his  pe- 
culiar ideas  of  bass,  conspiring  to  produce  the  strangest 
possible  combination  of  sounds.  But  to  these  simple, 
fervent  souls  it  was  a  season  of  delight,  with  the  ex- 
ception, perhaps,  of  Saul,  who  suffered  considerably  in 
his  ears,  but  felt  his  heart  all  aglow.  The  praise 
ended,  Jemmy,  with  his  hand  upon  the  open  Bible, 
lifted  his  face  with  closed  eyes  and  said :  "  Ho,  hour 
Father,  give  us  some  bread  from  thy  dear  Word. 
We're  very  'ungry  to-night,  although  we've  ben 
a-feedin'  on  thy  love  all  the  week,  an'  like  a  nest  o' 
young  birds  we've  all  got  our  mouths  wide  open  wait- 
in'  for  ye  to  drop  suthin'  in.  We  wants  to  be  re- 
freshed after  our  week's  warfare  with  the  world,  the 
flesh,  an'  the  devil.  We  wants  t'  be  prepared  for  our 
meetin'  aroun'  thy  table  to-morrer.  We  wants  our 
faith  stren'thened,  our  hearts  soffened,  our  eyes 
opened  wider,  our  ears  touched  that  we  may  hear  thy 
voice.  An'  we  know  we  can't  get  these  things  done 
for  us  only  in  thy  way.  May  thy  Holy  Spirit  then 
take  the  Word  an'  break  it  up  accordin'  to  each  of  our 
needs  an'  we  shall  be  fed  indeed ;  for  Jesus  Christ's 
sake.  Amen." 

Then,  without  further  preliminary,  the  speaker 
plunged  into  the  sublimity  of  the  twelfth  chapter  of 
Hebrews.  His  reading  was,  to  put  it  mildly,  simply 
abominable.  Worse  it  could  hardly  be,  even  if  com- 
pared with  that  of  some  of  the  clergymen  in  the  Estab- 
lished Church,  who  supply  us  with  probably  the  very 
worst  readers  in  the  world.  Nevertheless,  as  his  hear- 
ers were  not  critics,  as  they  were  all  carefully  following 

35 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

the  words  from  their  own  Bibles,  and  above  all  as  they 
were  each  convinced  of  the  absolute  sincerity  and  love 
of  the  reader,  his  queer  rendering  of  the  Divine  Word 
gave  them  no  pain.  And  when  he  had  finished,  Skip- 
per Stevens  led  in  prayer.  His  deep,  hoarse  tones,  re- 
minding one  of  the  muttering  of  a  distant  storm,  his 
very  conventional  phraseology  and  many  repetitions, 
from  his  poverty  of  words  wherein  to  express  what 
he  felt,  would  doubtless  have  caused  a  sarcastic  smile 
to  curl  the  lip  of  many  a  cultured  religionist  had  such 
a  one  so  far  forgotten  himself  as  to  be  present  at 
such  a  humble  meeting.  But  to  those  poor  folks  it 
was  as  sweet  incense  ascending  to  the  throne  of  the 
Most  High  God,  and  by  its  means  they  became  up- 
lifted, energized,  made  glad. 

For  an  hour  the  meeting  continued,  every  one 
present  joining  in  the  service  of  prayer  and  praise,  until 
Sister  Salmon,  who  had  hitherto  held  her  peace,  sup- 
plied the  closing  petition. 

"  Dear  Father,"  she  said,  "  we've  come  again  out 
of  the  noise  of  the  world  and  the  struggle  for  daily 
bread  to  you  for  that  which  we  can't  get  anywhere  else 
— your  smile,  your  encouragement  to  go  on,  your 
words  of  joy  and  peace  and  love.  If  it  wasn't  for  you, 
dear  Saviour,  there  wouldn't  be  any  sunshine  in  our 
lives  at  all,  for  the  sorrow  of  the  world  around  us  is 
very  great.  But,  bless  your  Holy  Name,  you've  given 
us  a  sure  and  certain  hope,  a  knowledge,  that  nothing 
can  shake,  of  your  wisdom  and  love  which  sets  our 
souls  in  a  sea  of  peace.  If  we  didn't  know  that  you 
will  set  all  wrongs  right ;  that  you  will  yet  be  acknowl- 
edged as  the  King  of  Glory  by  all  your  creatures ;  that 
you  will  be  justified  in  all  things  by  your  Son — our 
Saviour  and  Friend — we  should  not  be  able  to  go  on, 

36 


The  Pleasure  of  Service 

seeing  what  we  see  and  feeling  what  we  feel.  But  our 
ignorance  has  been  swallowed  up  in  your  wisdom, 
our  mistrust  is  hidden  by  our  faith,  our  weakness  is 
infolded  in  your  strength ;  and  so,  in  spite  of  all  our 
trying  surroundings,  we  are  indeed  happy  with  a  happi- 
ness that  nothing  can  rob  us  of.  Bless,  O  Father,  our 
efforts  in  your  service  to-morrow.  Give  us  each  some- 
thing to  do  for  you  with  grace  sufficient  for  the  doing 
of  it,  and  assurance  that  in  all  our  work,  honestly  done 
for  you,  we  shall  be  guided  and  sanctified  by  your  Holy 
Spirit.  Give  rest  to  the  weary  ones  around  us,  cleans- 
ing to  the  dirty,  soberness  to  the  drunken,  honesty 
to  the  thieves,  gentleness  to  the  cruel,  food  to  the 
hungry,  and  unity  among  ourselves;  for  Jesus'  sake. 
Amen." 

As  the  thin,  quavering  voice  ceased  there  was  a 
sacred  hush  over  the  little  company — a  hush  like  that 
of  the  Holy  of  Holies — and  it  was  with  a  sigh  as  of 
pain  that  they  rose  stiffly  from  their  knees,  the  pain  of 
return  to  the  world  around  them  symbolized  by  the 
strident  yelling  of  a  ribald  song  by  a  band  of  male 
and  female  roisterers  that  had  just  swung  round  the 
corner  into  Lupin  Street. 

When  the  discordant  echoes  had  died  away,  Jemmy 
rose  from  his  knees  and  said :  "  Brethering  an'  sisters, 
th'  Lawd  'as  done  great  things  fer  us  about  our  'all.  I 
want  ye  t'sport  me  now  in  goin'  forward  an'  securin' 
th'  place  afore  somebody  else  snaps  it  up.  I  ain't  much 
of  a  business  man,  as  ye  know,  but  I  knows  enough  to 
feel  shore  'at  a  place  like  that  there  in  this  neighbour- 
wood  ain't  a-goin'  beggin'  long.  I've  a-got  the  fust 
'arf  year's  rent  'ere"  (producing  it),  "an'  I  ain't  even  'ad 
t'  ask  for  it.  An'  I'm  shore  'at  th'  Lawd's  a-goin' t'  do 
more  'n  ever  we  expect  about  it.  We  sh'll  'ave  t'  wuk, 

37 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

of  course ;  our  Farther  don't  want  any  lazy  children, 
an'  'e  ain't  got  'em,  bless  'is  'Oly  Name,  in  this  mis- 
sion. Now,  wot  I  arsks  is  this :  you  let  me,  in  the 
name  o'  th'  church,  go  an'  take  th'  place,  and  then 
promise,  each  one  of  ye,  t'  be  a  shillin'  a  week  to'rds 
the  rent,  'sides  wot  you've  alwus  ben  willin'  t'  give 
as  y'  could  afford  it.  As  fur  wot  it'll  want  doin'  to — 
well,  we're  none  of  us  afraid  of  'ard  work,  an'  I  perpose 
'at  we  do  wot's  wanted  with  our  own  'ands,  only 
spendin'  wot's  necessary  t'  buy  materials.  Brother 
Jenkins  and  Brother  Soames  ain't  'ere,  but  I  feels 
shore  we  can  count  on  'em  fur  all  they  can  possible  do 
in  a  matter  of  this  kind.  Wot  d'ye  say  ?  " 

He  paused  and  looked  round  upon  the  care-lined 
faces  somewhat  anxiously,  his  whole  heart  shining  in 
his  eyes.  In  reply,  Saul  Andrews  spoke  first.  He  said : 
"  Brothers  an'  sisters,  I'm  only  a  child  among  ye,  but 
I  feels  very  grateful  fur  wot  the  Lord  'as  let  ye  do  for 
me.  I  got  a  big  ship  t'day  fur  a  colonial  voy'ge  as 
bo'sun,  an'  th'  wages  is  £4  10  a  month.  As  most  of 
ye  know,  I  ain't  got  a  soul  in  th'  world  but  myself  to 
pervide  for,  an'  I'll  leave  my  'arf-pay,  £253  month,  fur 
this  voy'ge  anyhow.  I'm  shore  it'll  be  the  'appiest 
voy'ge  I  ever  made.  Use  the  £2  a  month  fur  necessary 
expenses  and  the  $s.  fur  my  conterbution  to  the  rent. 
Gawd  bless  th'  Wren  Lane  Mission  'All." 

With  such  a  lead  as  that,  what  could  the  others  do, 
even  had  they  been  lukewarm  instead  of  full  of  love 
to  God  and  man.  Their  promises  were  soon  all  made. 
Jemmy  was  fully  authorized  to  proceed.  And  with  a 
sense  of  joy  in  service  that  an  archbishop  might  vainly 
endeavour  to  attain  unto,  Jemmy  rose  again  to  offer  a 
final  word  of  praise. 

"  Ho  Farther  Gord,"  he  sobbed,  "  this  is  almost 

38 


The  Pleasure  of  Service 

more'n  we  c'n  bear.  We're  all  a-runnin'  over  with 
gladness  of  'eart.  Give  us  wisdom  to  walk  worthy  of 
your  kindness,  give  us  grace  t'  remember  wot  you've 
been,  and  done,  to  us.  Accept  hour  praise  for  all  thy 
wondrous  love  an'  mercy  in  th'  name  of  Jesus. 
Amen." 

And   then    he   burst   into   the    Doxology   of   the 
Brethren : 

"Glory,  honour,  praise,  and  power 
Be  unto  the  Lamb  forever. 
Jesus  Christ  is  our  Redeemer. 
Hallelujah,  hallelujah,  hallelujah  !     Praise  ye  the  Lord." 


39 


CHAPTER  VI 

A  SUNDAY  MORNING 

AMID  the  enormous  number  of  critical,  cynical,  and 
earnest  remarks  that  have  been  passed  about  the  Brit- 
ish Sunday  in  general  and  the  London  Sunday  in  par- 
ticular, I  do  not  remember  having  seen  one  that 
looked  as  if  made  with  intimate  knowledge  of  the 
lives  of  the  people  about  whom  it  was  written.  And 
this  is  especially  true  of  the  great  mass  of  God-fearing 
people  in  London  who,  being  just  below  the  class  de- 
nominated "  respectable  " — i.  e.,  well-dressed — find  an 
infinite  delight  in  offering  up  their  lives  on  that  day  in 
personal  service  to  a  loving  father.  Herein  it  is  my 
inestimable  privilege  to  offer  a  few  personal  details  in 
confirmation  of  the  remarks  I  am  making.  For  fif- 
teen years  I  lived  in  London  one  of  the  most  strenuous 
lives  possible  with  pecuniary  results  the  most  trivial. 
Employed  from  nine  till  five  in  a  quasi-government 
office  at  a  meagre  salary,  I  tried  to  eke  out,  in  the 
hours  that  should  have  been  devoted  to  recreation  and 
reading,  that  salary  by  working  at  the  trade  of  a 
picture-framer,  a  trade  I  had  taught  myself.  When 
business  was  brisk  this  often  necessitated  my  being  in 
my  workshop  at  2  A.  M.  in  order  to  fulfil  the  con- 
tracts I  had  made  to  deliver  frames  at  a  certain  time. 
It  also  meant  my  working  up  till  sometimes  as  late 
as  1 1  P.  M.  So  that  when  Sunday  came  with  its  placid, 

40 


A  Sunday   Morning 

restful  morning,  I  always  felt  profoundly  grateful,  not 
only  for  the  bodily  rest,  but  for  the  way  in  which  I 
was  able  to  throw  off  the  mental  worries  of  the  week 
and  let  the  sunshine  of  the  Father's  love  illuminate  the 
desert  places  of  my  heart. 

But  I  never  felt  the  slightest  desire  to  spend  those 
precious  hours  in  bed.  Feeling  renewed  in  vigorous 
strength,  I  was  up  at  about  seven  helping  to  prepare 
the  dinner  and  doing  such  odd  household  jobs  as 
would  relieve  my  wife,  and  at  10.30  away  to  the  meet- 
ing for  the  breaking  of  bread.  Returning  at  1.30,  I 
spent  the  afternoon  at  home  usually,  unlike  many  of 
my  brethren  who  had  their  Sunday-schools  to  attend. 
After  tea,  or  say  at  6  P.  M.,  I  set  off  with  the  most 
eager,  joyous  anticipation  to  the  open-air  meeting, 
and  returned — sometimes  almost  dropping  with  bodily 
fatigue,  but  with  a  peace  that  was  flowing  like  a  mighty 
river — at  about  10.30  P.  M.  The  idea  of  self-sacrifice 
never  occurred  to  me.  Nor  did  it,  I  am  persuaded,  to 
any  of  my  colleagues,  many  of  them  men  and  women 
in  far  humbler  positions  than  myself.  Had  any  one 
suggested  to  us  that  we  were  very  good,  very  holy,  be- 
cause we  did  these  things,  we  should  have  felt  utterly 
amazed  and  as  utterly  ashamed,  because  we  knew  full 
well  that  the  joy  of  the  service  was  beyond  and  above 
any  other  delight  to  be  procured  by  the  sons  of  men 
upon  any  terms  soever. 

Therefore,  although  we  were  often  far  more  weary 
in  body  than  we  were  on  a  week-day,  we  had  an 
exaltation  of  spirit  which  was  like  being  drunken  with 
the  new  wine  of  the  kingdom,  heartening  us  and  up- 
lifting us  to  meet  the  hardness  of  the  new  week.  None 
of  us  felt  any  desire  for  a  Continental  Sunday,  neither, 
as  far  as  I  am  aware,  did  the  masses  of  people  among 

41 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

whom  we  laboured.  The  vast  majority  of  them  did 
not  go  to  any  church  or  chapel  at  all,  the  constraint 
galled  them,  and  something,  they  could  not  explain 
what,  made  them  feel  that  the  man  who  preached  from 
a  pulpit  to  rows  of  expensively  clothed,  decorous  wor- 
shippers was  only  a  tradesman  who  was  doing  business 
under  false  pretences.  But  for  all  that,  there  were  none 
of  them,  I  am  sure,  who  would  not  have  fought  with 
all  their  might  against  such  an  abolition  of  one  day's 
rest  in  seven  as  may  be  seen  on  the  Continent. 

Sunday  morning,  then,  found  Jemmy  up  at  7  A.  M., 
helping  to  prepare  his  numerous  progeny  for  Sunday- 
school  amid  a  running  fire  of  sarcasm  from  his  sharp- 
voiced  helpmate.  And  as  the  boys,  who  went  to  work 
and  were,  as  before  noted,  the  main  support  of  the 
household,  could  not  be  expected  to  sacrifice  their 
one  day  a  week,  Jemmy  might  have  been  seen,  had 
any  one  popped  in,  busy  peeling  potatoes,  cutting  cab- 
bages, boning  and  rolling  the  flank  of  beef  so  that  it 
should  look  like  ribs,  etc.  What,  some  of  my  readers 
will  say,  this  righteous  man  cooking  on  Sunday !  Oh, 
yes ;  please  remember  that  to  the  majority  of  poor 
Londoners  Sunday's  dinner-table  is  a  sort  of  family 
altar.  Around  it  gathers  once  a  week  a  united  family 
who  look  forward  to  it  with  pathetic  interest  as  a  relief 
from  scrambling  meals  at  cook-shops  or  in  darksome 
corners  off  fragments  they  are  ashamed  to  let  their  fel- 
lows see.  It  has  often  been  said  that  the  cockney 
starves  all  the  week  so  that  he  may  gorge  on  a  Sun- 
day. I  don't  admit  its  truth,  but  I  do  know  that  the 
Sunday  dinner-table  is  a  potent  influence  in  keeping 
unrelaxed  the  family  bond,  and  I  am  a  determined  op- 
ponent of  any  one  who  would  destroy  the  institution. 

But  as  the  hands  of  the  clock  approached  10.30 
42 


A  Sunday  Morning 

Jemmy  became  noticeably  perturbed.  At  last  Mrs. 
Maskery's  voice  rang  out  sharply :  "  Now,  then, 
stoopid,  that  ain't  the  dish-cloth  you're  a-wipin'  that 
saucepan  out  with.  I  see  wot's  the  matter  with  ye. 
It's  time  you  was  off.  Well,  get  along  'r  else  you'll  be 
late.  You'll  fine  a  clean  shirt  an'  collar  an'  'ankercher 
on  th'  bed,  an  yer  close  is  all  ready  brushed. — Billy, 
did  ye  clean  farther's  best  boots?"  "Yes,  muvver," 
piped  up  Billy  (aged  eight),  "  an'  farver  gimme  a 
penny."  "  Did  he?  "  said  the  prudent  mother;  "  then 
let  me  put  it  in  yer  money-box  an'  I'll  give  ye  a  beau- 
tiful orange,  better'n  old  Walker  'd  give  ye  for  it." 

Off  darted  Jemmy,  and  in  a  very  short  time  reap- 
peared clad  in  his  well-known  canonicals,  a  full  suit 
of  black,  given  to  him  years  ago  by  a  Christian  friend 
who  loved  him  for  his  simple  exposition  of  the  Word, 
and  his  sweet,  happy  disposition.  Entering  his  parlour 
with  a  reverent  air,  he  went  to  the  couch,  whereon 
lay  a  brown-paper  parcel  containing  a  carefully  got-up 
tablecloth.  This  he  spread  over  the  table  with  careful 
hands,  and  upon  it,  exactly  in  the  centre,  he  placed  a 
bottle  containing  wine  (British  port  at  a  shilling  a 
bottle),  a  fat,  dropsical-looking  tumbler,  and  a  penny 
loaf  on  a  blue  dinner-plate.  Then,  around  the  margin 
of  the  table,  at  regular  intervals,  he  placed  copies  of 
the  Hymns  and  Spiritual  Songs  with  Appendix,  with- 
out which  no  meeting  of  the  "  Brethren  "  for  worship 
could  be  considered  complete.  And  this  holds  good, 
no  matter  how  many  slightly  varying  congregations 
that  decidedly  fissiparous  body  becomes  divided  into. 

The  chairs  placed  in  position,  all  preparations  were 
complete,  and  Jemmy,  big  Bible  in  hand  and  collec- 
tion-box at  his  side,  seated  himself  to  await  the  com- 
ing of  the  Church.  The  members  dropped  in  one  by 

43 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

one  until  the  little  apartment  was  full,  and  when  it  ap- 
peared that  all  were  present  who  would  be  that  morn- 
ing, Jemmy  opened  the  meeting  with  prayer.  And 
now  might  be  seen  the  secret  of  power  possessed  by 
these  humble,  primitive  followers  of  the  humblest  of 
men.  There  were  no  adjuncts  to  tickle  the  senses,  no 
external  influences  acting  with  subtle  force  upon  the 
worshippers  and  misleading  them  into  the  belief  that 
their  feelings  were  evidence  of  their  being  truly  in 
touch  with  the  invisible  things  of  God.  Jemmy's  face 
was  transfigured.  Big  tears  rolled  down  his  cheeks 
and  glistened  in  his  russet  beard  like  diamonds.  His 
voice  shook,  his  body  trembled,  and  when  he  sat  down, 
no  one  in  the  room  had  any  doubt  whatever  that  as 
in  the  days  of  the  Master  upon  earth,  so  he  was  in  very 
deed  and  truth  present  with  them,  head  of  this  table 
spread  in  the  wilderness. 

A  song  followed  the  prayer : 

"  Praise  the  Saviour,  ye  who  know  Him  ; 
Think,  oh,  think  how  much  we  owe  Him  ; 
Gladly  let  us  render  to  Him 
All  we  are  and  have." 

Then  a  reading  by  Brother  Salmon  of  an  appropri- 
ate portion.  Then  another  prayer,  another  song,  and 
so  on  without  calling  upon  individuals,  but  each  one 
rising  and  doing  his  or  her  part  spontaneously,  until 
at  last  there  was  an  expectant  hush.  For  several  min- 
utes no  one  stirred;  all  sat  with  heads  bowed,  appar- 
ently in  awe-stricken  communion  with  the  Unseen. 
Then  Jemmy  rose,  and  drawing  the  platter  and  loaf 
towards  him,  placed  his  hand  upon  the  loaf,  and  lifting 
his  face  with  eyes  fast-closed,  said : 

"  Dear  Master  an'  Lord,  agen  we've  met  aroun' 

44 


A  Sunday  Morning 

your  table  t'  remember  your  broken  body,  your 
poured-out  blood  till  you  come.  We're  very  poor, 
very  ignorant,  very  'umble,  but  we  believe  an'  are 
shore  'at  you  are  glad  t'  'ave  us  come  an'  do  just  wot 
you've  told  us  t'  do.  We  ain't  got  no  priest  made  by 
man  because  you've  told  us  that  you  yourself  are  our 
'Igh  Priest,  abidin'  continually.  We  can't  see  thee, 
but  we  know  you're  'ere.  An'  though  these  pore  'ands 
o'  mine  takes  this  bread  "  (taking  it  up)  "  and  breaks 
it  as  you  did  in  that  upper  room  long  ago,  we  know 
that  it's  all  just  as  pleasant  to  you  as  it  was  w'en  you 
'ad  all  your  disciples  aroun'  you.  We  know,  an'  are 
shore  that  all  your  beloved  ones  is  one  with  you  as 
this  loaf  is  one  now,  an'  we  know  that  as  we  break  this 
loaf "  (breaking  it  into  four)  "  according  to  thy  ker- 
marnment,  so  your  blessed  body,  the  'uman  body  you 
wore  fur  our  sakes,  was  broken  fur  us.  An'  now  we're 
a-goin'  t'  'and  it  round  an'  eat  of  it  accordin'  t'  thy 
word — '  This  do  in  rememberance  of  me  till  I  come.'  " 
And  having  thus  spoken,  Jemmy  passed  to  his  next 
neighbour  the  plate  with  the  broken  loaf.  Brother 
Salmon,  for  it  was  he,  broke  off  a  goodly  portion  and 
passed  the  plate  to  his  neighbour.  So  it  made  the  cir- 
cuit of  the  table  in  solemn  silence,  and  all  ate — did  not 
merely  taste  one  crumb,  but  ate  as  if  they  were  actu- 
ally consuming  the  sweetest  morsel  they  had  ever 
tasted  in  their  lives.  When  the  plate  had  completed  its 
round  there  was  another  period  of  solemn  silence,  dur- 
ing which  each  member  either  communed  with  God 
in  the  secret  places  of  his  own  soul  or  sat  dumbly,  with 
his  mind  a  blank,  as  many  dear  earnest  ones  do  who 
find  it  impossible  to  concentrate  their  thoughts  on 
their  petitions  or  praises  unless  they  utter  them 
aloud. 

45 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

Again  Jemmy  rose  from  his  knees,  and  with  trem- 
bling hands  took  up  the  bottle  and  glass.  He  poured 
out  about  a  quarter  of  a  glassful  and  then,  gently  re- 
placing the  bottle  on  the  middle  of  the  table,  held  his 
hand  over  the  glass  and  said :  "  Lord,  knowin'  that 
without  sheddin'  of  blood  there  is  no  remission  of  sins, 
we  remember  with  thankful  'earts  'at  your  precious 
blood  was  shed  for  us.  Don't  let  us  ever  fergit  fur  one 
minute  'at  it  cost  thee  thy  'eart's-blood  t'  redeem  us 
from  our  sins.  We  remember,  dear  Lord,  'at  you  was 
just  a  'ard-workin'  man  on  earth  like  we  are,  only  we're 
a  great  deal  better  off  than  ever  you  was.  An'  please 
don't  let  us  fergit,  'at  although  you  did  pour  out  your 
soul  unto  death — an'  this  wine  which  is  the  type  of 
life  to  us  is  also  the  type  of  death  to  you,  the  death  of 
your  'uman  'ouse — yet,  glory  be  to  thy  'Oly  Name,  the 
grave  couldn't  'old  you,  you  made  a  show  of  it ;  an'  like 
Samson  a-carryin'  away  the  Gates  of  Gazer,  you  took 
captivity  captive  an'  you're  alive  forevermore.  An' 
more  'an  that,  dear  Saviour,  we  want  alwus  to  hold  in 
our  'eart  of  'earts  'at  you're  not  a  long  way  away  from 
us,  but  'at  here  an'  now  you're  wiv  us  a-sayin'  unto  us, 
'  Lo,  I  am  wiv  you  alwus,  even  unto  the  end  of  the 
world.' 

"  The  cup  of  blessin'  w'ich  we  bless,  is  it  not  the 
communion  of  the  blood  of  Christ?  As  often  as  ye 
shall  drink  this  cup  in  obedience  to  Christ's  word  an' 
kermarnment  ye  do  show  forf  the  Lord's  death  till  he 
come." 

Every  member  present  murmuringly  repeated  the 
solemn  words,  "  Till  he  come,"  and  the  glass  circu- 
lated until  all  had  taken  a  sip.  Then,  with  a  perceptible 
change,  a  manifest  lightening  of  the  solemnity,  Skip- 
per Stevens  gave  out  the  much-loved  hymn, 

46 


A  Sunday   Morning 

"  Come  ye  that  love  the  Lord, 
And  let  your  joys  be  known." 

It  was  sung  with  most  earnest  enthusiasm,  if  without 
much  melody,  and  at  its  close  Brother  Salmon  rose, 
immediately  after  all  had  resumed  their  seats,  opening 
his  well-worn  Bible  at  a  place  where  several  leaves 
had  been  turned  down  in  readiness.  I  dare  not  at- 
tempt to  give  a  precis  of  his  little  sermon.  To  do  it 
faithfully  would  be  to  make  people  wonder  how  it 
came  to  be  possible  that  a  man  so  saturated  with  the 
love  of  God,  fortified  with  so  many  years'  reading 
in  the  best  of  books,  could  give  utterance  to  so  utterly 
futile  and  rambling  a  series  of  remarks.  Broken-kneed 
allegories,  maddening  metaphors,  hopelessly  wrong 
conclusions  and  jumbled-up  sentences,  made  up  an 
address  of  twenty  minutes'  duration.  It  would  be  per- 
fectly just  and  unexaggerating  to  say  that  when  he  sat 
down  both  he  and  his  hearers  wrere  in  a  state  of  hope- 
less mental  fog.  And  why?  Because,  like  so  many 
others  of  his  class,  he  must  needs  attempt  a  task  for 
which  he  was  utterly  unfitted  either  by  training  or 
temperament.  Put  him  in  an  open-air  meeting,  give 
him  five  minutes  in  which  to  tell  the  story  of  the  cross, 
and  you  would  get  a  glorious  result.  But  give  him  a 
chance  to  attempt  oratory,  to  essay  exegesis,  and  pres- 
ently you  would,  if  you  were  a  stranger  to  such  meet- 
ings, wonder  which  of  you  were  mad — the  speaker  or 
the  listener.  Still,  there  is  no  doubt  that  such  speeches 
do  these  simple  souls  little  or  no  harm.  Having  been 
born  again,  their  lives  are  fruitful,  not  of  words  but  of 
deeds,  and  they  cannot  be  injured  by  any  floundering 
interpreter  of  any  difficult  passages  in  God's  Word. 

A  few  prayers  and  hymns  followed  in  quick  succes- 
sion until  each  member  of  the  little  gathering  had 

47 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

spoken  or  read,  and  then  came  the  benediction  from 
Jemmy,  the  sweet  old  form  of  words  hallowed  by  many 
centuries  of  use  :  "  The  grace  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ, 
and  the  love  of  God,  and  the  fellowship  of  the  Holy 
Ghost,  be  with  us  all  evermore.  Amen."  The  contri- 
bution-box passed  from  hand  to  hand,  never  without 
some  addition  to  its  store  of  coins,  and  when  it  had 
made  the  circuit,  Jemmy  emptied  it  on  the  table, 
counted  it  in  sight  of  the  members  as  they  were  put- 
ting on  their  hats  and  overcoats,  and  entered  the 
amount  in  his  little  book.  Meanwhile  there  was  a 
pleasant  clatter  of  talk,  absent  members  were  dis- 
cussed, the  unpleasant  incidents  of  the  previous  even- 
ing up  and  down  Lupin  Street,  of  which  a  rank  crop 
was  always  forthcoming  every  Saturday  night,  were 
mournfully  touched  upon,  and  the  bright  prospects  of 
the  new  hall  alluded  to.  Then  out  into  Lupin  Street 
they  drifted,  not  without  much  warm  hand-shaking, 
to  enjoy  their  well-earned  Sunday  dinner  and  look  for- 
ward eagerly  to  the  open-air  service  of  the  evening. 


48 


CHAPTER  VII 

A   SUNDAY   EVENING 

IT  was  one  of  the  greatest  sorrows  of  the  little  Lu- 
pin Street  community  that  they  had  not  what  they 
considered  an  indispensable  adjunct  to  their  work,  a 
Sunday-school.  For  they  knew  full  well,  as  all  mis- 
sion workers  in  London  know,  that  while  parents  may 
be  utterly  godless  and  careless  about  the  health  of 
their  own  souls,  it  is  very  seldom  that  they  will  not 
strain  every  nerve  to  assist  their  children  into  the  way 
of  right  living  if  somebody  else  will  do  the  teaching. 
They  will  let  them,  that  is,  go  to  any  Sunday-school, 
whether  the  children  be  well  or  ill  taught,  feeling,  per- 
haps, that  some  vicarious  credit  will  come  to  them- 
selves for  so  doing. 

But  if  these  humble  brethren  had  no  Sunday- 
school  of  their  own,  they  could  and  did  find  other 
Sunday-schools  where  their  services  were  gladly  ac- 
cepted. Or  they  could  and  did  visit  work-house 
infirmaries,  hospitals,  lodging-houses,  everywhere 
bearing  with  them  their  message  of  salvation  through 
the  blood  of  Christ,  with  heaven  beyond,  or  rejection 
of  his  proffered  love  leading  straight  to  the  tortures 
never-ending  of  a  terrific  literal  hell  of  fire  immediately 
after  death.  Whatever  it  was  they  did  with  their  Sun- 
day afternoons,  at  any  rate  they  did  not  waste  them, 
but  earnestly  strove  to  glorify  the  God  in  whom  they 
believed. 

49 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

It  was  not,  however,  until  after  tea — that  it  to  say, 
about  6  P.  M. — that  they  rose  to  the  full  height  of  their 
enjoyment  of  God's  service.  Then  they  mustered  in 
full  force  at  Jemmy's  door,  bearing  with  them  from 
Brother  Salmon's  house  the  most  precious  of  all  their 
worldly  possessions — a  small  portable  harmonium  car- 
ried by  two  sticks  passed  through  rings  on  its  sides,  as 
the  Levites  carried  the  ark.  It  represented  to  them  the 
self-denial  of  many  weeks  before  the  £8  which  it  cost 
could  be  collected ;  and  in  their  eyes  it  was  a  perfect 
instrument,  specially  made  and  dedicated  to  the  service 
of  soul-winning  from  the  beginning  of  its  career  by 
the  great  Maker  of  all  good  things.  Its  advent  never 
failed  to  interest  the  youth  of  Lupin  Street  and  its 
vicinity,  who,  leaving  their  elvish  play,  to  the  great 
relief  of  the  householders  the  front  of  whose  premises 
they  honoured  with  their  presence,  disported  them- 
selves around  the  little  procession,  and  made  swift 
occasional  rushes  behind  to  touch  the  instrument, 
pleased  beyond  bearing  if  they  succeeded  in  so  doing. 
Thus  escorted,  the  band  of  workers  made  their  stately 
way  toward  the  "  Waste "  whereon  they  held  their 
evening  service,  taking  no  notice  of  passing  remarks 
by  saunterers,  but  doing  nothing  by  voice  or  gesture 
to  excite  aggression  from  malevolently  disposed 
passers-by. 

Arriving  at  their  pitch — which,  thanks  to  a  local 
guardian  appointed  by  the  authorities  for  the  purpose 
of  keeping  order,  was  reserved  to  them — they  found 
awaiting  them  a  middle-aged,  plainly  dressed  woman 
who  always  attended  for  the  purpose  of  playing  the  in- 
strument, a  duty  none  of  the  others  were  able  to  per- 
form. She  was  a  member  of  a  "  Brethren  "  meeting 
some  distance  away,  and  nothing  would  have  per- 

50 


A   Sunday   Evening 

suaded  her  to  take  any  part,  even  the  smallest,  in  the 
worship  at  Jemmy's.  Nor  have  I  ever  been  able  to 
understand  how  it  was  that  she  escaped  being  admon- 
ished as  "  disorderly."  Perhaps  she  had  received  a 
special  dispensation  to  play  for  the  "Apostles  "  on  the 
understanding  that  she  took  no  other  part  whatever. 
The  reason  why  I  say  this  is  because  I  myself  have 
been  warned  off  three  "  gatherings  "  where  I  was  a 
member,  simply  because  I  would  reserve  my  right  to 
go  and  preach  the  Gospel  in  any  meeting  where  I  was 
invited  at  times  when  my  own  band  did  not  require 
my  services.  And,  as  a  rule,  there  is  no  papal  rule  more 
inflexible  than  that  wielded  by  the  elders  of  these  tiny 
gatherings.  If  a  member  does  not  see  eye  to  eye  with 
the  real  ruler  of  the  meeting  he  or  she  must  leave, 
even  when,  as  sometimes  does  happen,  they  take  half  of 
the  other  members  with  them. 

The  organ  having  been  upreared  and  a  camp-stool 
set  for  the  player,  a  little  hand-shaking  ensued  between 
the  members  and  a  few  unattached  sympathizers  whose 
habit  it  was  to  come  to  this  particular  open-air  pitch 
every  Sunday.  Then  a  ring  was  formed,  and  Jemmy 
offered  up  a  short  emphatic  petition  for  guidance,  for 
wisdom,  for  success.  That  ended,  he  looked  round 
and  said :  "  Brother  Saul,  will  ye  give  out  a  'ymn  ?  " 
Immediately  Saul  stepped  forward,  and  in  a  fine  bary- 
tone voice,  without  the  book,  his  whole  face  aglow, 
recited  the  first  verse  of  The  Gospel  Bells  are  Ring- 
ing, following  it  with  an  emphatic  announcement  of 
the  number.  One  chord  on  the  harmonium,  and  all 
the  members  struck  at  once  into  the  song ;  the  meeting 
was  fairly  under  way.  As  each  verse  was  sung  Saul 
'  recited  the  next,  so  that  if  by  any  chance  the  singing 
should  make  the  words  indistinct,  no  one  present  might 

51 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

have  any  excuse  for  saying  they  did  not  know  what 
they  were  singing  about. 

Then  Jemmy  produced  his  big  Bible  and  read  the 
fifty-fifth  chapter  of  Isaiah.  It  was  a  great  mistake 
which  he  always  committed,  but  which  nothing  would 
induce  him  to  forego.  A  mistake,  because  in  the  first 
place  it  undid  all  that  had  been  done  in  the  way  of 
getting  an  audience  together.  At  the  commencement 
curiosity  had  led  a  few  passers-by  to  stand  and  look 
on  while  the  organ  was  being  set  up,  the  singing  of  the 
first  hymn  had  attracted  more,  and  by  the  time  the 
singing  was  finished  quite  a  compact  little  crowd  had 
gathered.  But  it  is  a  peculiarity  of  open-air  audiences 
that  you  must  not  read  to  them.  No,  not  even  if  you 
be  that  very  rare  bird,  a  good  reader.  You  commence 
with  a  large  crowd  of  hearers  and  when  you  lower  your 
book  from  your  eyes  they  have  melted  away.  And 
Jemmy,  as  I  have  before  noted,  was  an  atrocious 
reader.  The  most  simple  and  beautiful  of  all  Bible 
narratives  became  meaningless,  or,  what  was  worse, 
ludicrous  when  he  read  them.  So  that  when  he  had 
finished  the  audience  had  departed,  as  usual,  and  in 
order  to  collect  another  it  was  necessary  to  sing  again. 
Then  Saul,  being  again  invited  to  give  out  a  hymn 
because  he  would  presently  be  gone  from  their  midst 
for  another  long  voyage,  volunteered  to  sing  alone. 
He  chose  that  most  touching  and  tender  little  song 
from  Sankey's  collection,  Jesus,  Saviour,  Pilot  Me, 
and  sang  it  with  all  his  heart  in  his  voice.  The  lovely 
words  might  have  been  heard  from  end  to  end  of 
the  common,  so  clearly  were  they  enunciated.  It  was 
easy  to  see  that  the  singer  had  no  thought  of  parading 
the  beauty  of  his  voice ;  all  he  desired  was  that  the 
words  might  sink  into  the  souls  of  his  hearers  as  a 

52 


A   Sunday  Evening 

stone  dropped  into  water.  When  he  ceased  there  was 
no  open  space  visible  anywhere  near.  Fully  a  thou- 
sand people  were  standing  spell-bound,  listening  not 
merely  with  their  ears,  but  with  their  hearts.  And 
Jemmy  wisely  nudged  Saul,  whispering :  "  Go  on, 
brother,  speak  to  'em  now  w'ile  you've  got  their  'ten- 
tion — in  the  name  of  God." 

So  Saul,  having  apparently  taken  no  notice  of  any 
interruption,  followed  up  his  song  immediately  by 
saying : 

"  Brothers  and  sisters,  when  Jesus  was  here  on 
earth,  a  poor  man  among  poor  men,  he  went  about 
among  the  people  doin'  good.  He  didn't  worry  them 
with  much  talk,  but  he  was  always  ready  to  help  any 
one  in  trouble,  to  heal  any  sick  man  or  woman,  and  to 
feed  the  hungry,  although  to  do  this  he  had  to  put  out 
all  the  power  that  was  in  him  as  God.  When  it  came 
to  gettin'  food  or  lodgin'  for  himself,  he  was  always 
dependent  on  other  people.  You'll  find  that  nearly 
all  his  mighty  works  was  done  for  the  benefit  of  others, 
the  poor  sheep  without  a  shepherd.  An'  that's  why 
I'm  here  to-night.  Jesus  has  saved  me  from  my  sins, 
has  made  me  happy,  though  as  poor  as  any  one  of 
you ;  has  comforted  me  in  my  loneliness,  and  is  always 
teachin'  me  some  new  an'  beautiful  way  of  happiness, 
an'  how  can  I  rest  quiet  in  my  boardin'-house  or  go 
out  t'  enjoy  myself  in  the  old  miserable  way  knowin' 
as  I  do  that  there's  thousan's  of  men  an'  women  an' 
children  in  this  great  London  of  ours  that's  utterly 
cast  down,  hopeless  and  despairin'  because  they  don't 
know  anythin'  about  the  love  of  God  for  them  as 
shown  in  the  sendin'  of  Jesus  Christ  his  Son  t'  live  an' 
die  for  us.  Now  what  I  want  you  t'  listen  to  about 
my  Master  is  this.  First  of  all,  he  loves  you  with  an 

53 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

everlastin'  love.  Next,  he  wants  you  to  know  that 
he  does.  He's  made  all  your  sorrows  his  own ;  there 
isn't  anything  that  you  suffer,  whether  you've  brought 
it  on  yourselves  or  not,  that  he  don't  feel  an'  long  t' 
help  you  bear  or  get  free  from.  He  wants  you  to  come 
to  him — he  don't  want  you  to  go  to  a  church  or  to  a 
clergyman ;  that'll  come  in  its  right  place,  if  necessary. 
But  first  of  all  he  wants  you  to  come  to  him ;  and  if  any 
or  all  of  you  are  thinkin'  as  I  did — '  Ah,  that's  all 
very  well,  but  it  don't  mean  me ' — I  can  only  tell  you 
what  the  Master  says  himself :  '  Come  unto  me,  all  ye 
that  labour  and  are  heavy-laden,  and  I  will  give  you 
rest.'  You  all  know  very  well  that  I'm  not  a-talking 
about  somethin'  I  ain't  felt.  I'm  one  of  yourselves, 
a  man  that's  been  pretty  well  knocked  about,  not  only 
here  in  my  native  town,  but  all  over  the  world.  I 
know  what  it  is  to  be  out  of  work  an'  hungry,  to  be 
lonely  an'  ready  to  fling  myself  into  the  river  to  get 
out  of  my  misery.  An'  I  know  somethin'  about  the 
lot  of  the  poor  woman  that  has  to  toil  early  an'  late 
to  keep  a  lazy,  drunken  husband  an'  the  children  he's 
begotten  as  well.  Besides  all  these,  I  know  what  the 
life  of  a  forlorn  an'  friendless  child  itself  is.  But  I 
don't  know  anythin'  about  these  things  like  the  Lord 
himself  does.  I  can't  feel  anythin'  like  the  sympathy 
that  he  feels  for  the  weary,  the  sick,  an'  the  sorrowful. 
An'  as  to  love,  well,  I  feels  sometimes  as  if  my  heart 
would  break,  but,  bless  the  Lord,  his  tender  heart  did 
break  before  the  Roman  soldier  searched  it  with  his 
spear.  His  heart  broke  when  he  saw  how  the  very 
sufferin'  ones  he  came  to  save  an'  make  happy  turned 
away  from  him ;  for,  my  dear  ones,  let  me  say  it  with 
all  reverence  for  his  Almightiness,  there  is  one  thing 
he  can't  do— he  can't  save  you  if  you  won't  let  him. 

54 


A   Sunday  Evening 

There's  only  one  person  stands  between  any  poor  wan- 
derin'  one  here  an'  salvation,  an'  that's  himself  or  her- 
self. I'll  go  further  than  that,  an'  say  with  all  my 
heart  that  there's  only  one  way  into  the  outer  dark- 
ness of  utter  separation  from  God,  an'  that's  over  the 
body  of  the  crucified  Son  of  God. 

"  But  some  of  you  may  ask  me  '  What  does  gettin' 
saved  mean?'  Well,  I'm  only  a  poor,  ignorant  man, 
wanting  words  badly  to  explain  myself,  but  as  far  as 
I've  been  able  to  see,  it  means  bein'  made  free.  Men 
an'  women,  'specially  in  this  country,  are  awful  fond 
of  talkin'  'bout  their  liberty.  But  what  do  they  mean  ? 
I  can  see  now  what  I  meant  when  I  did  the  same  thing, 
and  I  think  I  am  just  an  ordinary  kind  o'  feller.  I 
meant  that  I  wanted  to  do  whatever  I  felt  inclined  to 
without  interference  from  anybody,  an'  I  couldn't  see, 
poor,  blind  creature  that  I  was,  that  not  only  was  I 
wantin'  to  dive  into  perfect  slavery  to  my  own  evil  de- 
sires, but  that  in  doin'  so  I  would  be  robbin'  everybody 
I  come  in  contrack  with  of  some  of  their  liberty.  The 
fact  is,  boys,  there  ain't  none  of  us  fit  to  be  trusted  with 
liberty  as  we,  without  the  light  of  God,  understand 
it.  If  we  only  stop  an'  think  fur  a  minute  we  shall  see 
at  once  that  this  is  true.  What  do  people  who  have 
rose  up  agen  their  rulers  an'  overcome  them  do  as  soon 
as  ever  the  victory's  won?  Why,  choose  another 
ruler!  Because  they  know  that  without  some  strong 
one  to  rule  over  them,  no  one  would  ever  dare  to  go 
to  sleep  for  fear  of  what  some  of  his  unruled  and  un- 
ruly neighbours  would  be  up  to.  Now,  what  Jesus 
means  by  salvation  is,  first  of  all,  being  set  free  from 
the  terrible  slavery  of  sin.  An'  he  does  this  in  the  only 
possible  way,  by  puttin'  his  own  life  into  you,  his  own 
nature,  which  instead  of  lovin'  sin  and  bein'  its  groan- 

5  55 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

in',  achin',  yet  willin'  slave,  hates  it,  shrinks  from  it, 
can't  put  up  with  it,  can't  allow  of  its  presence  any 
more  than  light  and  dark  can  exist  together.  Next,  he 
sets  us  free  from  the  fear  of  life,  mortal  life.  I  useter 
think  that  the  fear  of  death  was  greatest,  but  when  I 
see  how  many  men  an'  women  fly  to  death  because 
they're  afraid  t'  live,  I  come  to  the  conclusion  that  it 
isn't  dyin'  but  livin'  that's  the  most  terrible.  As  to 
dyin',  well,  when  we  have  been  born  agen,  death  be- 
comes a  word  without  any  meanin'  as  far  as  we're  con- 
cerned, because  we  know  that  as  soon  as  our  little 
bit  of  mortal  life  is  done  down  here  and  we're  set 
free  from  this  poor  shaky  house  of  ours,  with  all  its 
aches  an'  pains,  we  shall  enter  upon  a  new  career  of 
glorious  usefulness  in  the  other  world. 

"  I  put  that  side  of  salvation  last  because  it  right- 
fully comes  last.  There's  no  Christian  worth  callin' 
one  that  comes  to  Christ  for  the  sake  of  his  or  her  own 
safety,  just  because  there's  heaven  on  the  other  side 
of  the  dark  river.  Christian,  I  believe,  means  Christ's 
man,  Christ-like,  and  if  we  are  that  we  want  to  do 
the  work  among  our  poor  brothers  and  sisters  down 
here,  not  because  we're  goin'  to  get  paid  for  it  with 
heaven,  but  because  his  love  is  shed  abroad  in  our 
hearts  and  we  can  no  more  help  loving  one  another 
than  we  can  help  loving  him  who  loved  us  and  gave 
himself  for  us.  Anybody  who  says  to  himself  or  her- 
self that  they'll  come  to  Christ  for  what  they  can  get 
is  in  a  bad  way.  Their  hearts  haven't  been  touched 
by  repentance  for  doin'  wrong,  an'  shame  at  bein'  so 
long  deaf  to  the  call  of  a  lovin'  Father.  But  I  mustn't 
take  up  any  more  time,  because  there's  others  a-waitin' 
to  tell  ye  better'n  I  can  of  the  salvation  that  Jesus  is 
holdin'  out  to  ye.  I'll  just  wind  up  by  tellin'  ye 

56 


A  Sunday  Evening 

that  if  ye  don't  understand  me,  if  what  I've  been  saying 
seems  mysterious,  there's  one  that  can  make  all  things 
clear  to  ye.  All  Jesus  wants  is  that  you  should  be 
willin'  to  forsake  your  sins  and  come  to  him.  If  you 
tell  him  so  an'  ask  him  to  make  the  way  clear  to  ye, 
he'll  explain  all  things  as  nobody  else  can.  There's 
no  man  or  woman  or  child  so  ignerant  or  slow-witted 
that  they  can't  understand  how  to  come  to  Jesus  when 
Jesus  himself  tells  them  how  to  come.  An'  all  that  I 
or  any  other  of  God's  people  can  do  for  you  is  to  point 
this  out  to  you — that  he  is  the  way  an'  the  truth  an'  the 
life,  and  that  no  man  cometh  unto  the  Father  but  by 
him.  May  God  bless  all  of  ye  an'  make  ye  wise  unto 
salvation  fur  Christ's  sake.  Amen." 

Now,  while  Saul  had  been  speaking  there  had  been 
a  keenness  of  attention  almost  painful  in  its  intensity. 
It  must  be  borne  in  mind  that  this  gathering  was  a 
typical  street  one.  It  was  composed  of  that  class  of 
London's  workers  who  are  most  persistent  in  refusing 
a  hearing  to  any  representatives  of  the  churches.  Yet 
more  perfect  order,  deeper  and  more  real  interest  in 
what  was  being  said,  could  nowhere  have  been  found. 
Upon  these  people  the  problems  of  life  press  with  an  al- 
most crushing  weight,  and  it  is  one  of  the  most  pathetic 
as  well  as  one  of  the  most  hopeful  signs  that  they  are  so 
eager  to  listen  to  the  Gospel  from  any  one  in  whom 
they  feel  confidence,  and  who  will  not  talk  dreary  non- 
sense to  them  in  a  conventionally  lugubrious  voice. 
But,  had  it  not  been  for  Jemmy's  tact,  many  of  them 
would  have  edged  away  as  soon  as  Saul's  address  was 
over.  That  experienced  tactician,  however,  had,  while 
Saul  was  speaking,  chosen  a  sacred  song  with  a  rous- 
ing chorus,  and  the  moment  the  speaker  ended  there 
was  an  outburst  of  song  which  held  many  of  those 

57 


The  Apostles  of  the   Southeast 

who  were  minded  to  depart,  and  attracted  more  from 
the  steady  stream  of  passers-by.  As  soon  as  the  last 
chorus  died  away,  Jemmy  sprang  to  the  front,  casting 
his  hat  recklessly  upon  the  ground  at  his  feet,  and 
cried :  "  Glory  be  to  God  for  his  precious  promises, 
an'  fur  th'  big  way  he  fulfils  of  'em.  Don't  go  fur  just 
a  minute  w'ile  I  tells  ye  somefink  as'll  interest  ye. 
There's  lots  of  ye  'ere  as  knows  me  an'  my  farver. 
Knows  wot  devils  let  loose  we  useter  be,  specially 
when  we  was  a  bit  on.  Knows,  too,  wot  manner  o' 
men  we  ben  sence  Jesus  saved  our  souls,  an'  'ow  we 
ain't  never  ben  tired  o'  comin'  out  'ere  t'  tell  ye  on  great 
fings  th'  Lord  'as  done  fer  us.  An'  I'm  shore  there 
isn't  many  of  ye  wot  thinks,  after  all  these  years,  'at 
we've  ever  made  any  money  out  of  our  labours  among 
ye.  Well,  the  reason  w'y  I  says  this  is  becos  we're 
a-goin'  t'  'ave  a  'all,  a  place  where,  w'en  it's  a-rainin', 
or  too  cole  t'  expeck  ye  t'  stan'  out  'ere  un  lissen  to 
us,  we  k'n  invite  ye  in  an'  give  y'  a  seat.  But  we're 
all  like  yerselves,  pore  workin'  people,  an'  unless  y' 
'elp  us  it'll  be  almost  too  'eavy  a  burden  fer  us  t'  bear. 
An'  so  I'm  a-goin'  t'  do  wrot  I  never  done  before  in 
all  the  years  I  ben  a-preachin'  the  Gospel  in  th'  open 
air — I'm  a-goin' t'  arsk  ye  t'  'elp  us  wiv  a  little  money. 
An'  if  any  of  you  can't  afford  even  a  penny,  w'y,  come 
an'  do  a  bit  o'  graft.  We're  all  a-goin'  t'  help  so  as 
they  sha'n't  be  any  money  spent  for  labour,  on'y  mate- 
rials, an'  we'll  give  ye  a  'earty  welkim  an'  God'll  bless 
ye.  Now,  w'ile  we're  a-singin'  that  beautiful  'ymn, 
I  Know  in  'Oom  I  'Ave  Believed,  any  of  ye  'oose 
'earts  th'  Lord  'as  touched  will  please  throw  wot 
they  c'n  spare  into  the  ring  'ere ;  an'  we  sh'll  be 
grateful  even  fur  fardens  from  them  'at  can't  afford 
more." 

58 


A   Sunday  Evening 

The  speaker  had  hardly  concluded  before  a  bright 
half-crown  came  flying  over  the  heads  of  those  near- 
est, the  precursor  of  a  shower  of  coins  whose  jingle 
could  be  heard  even  above  the  strenuous  singing. 
Women  and  children  on  the  outskirts  of  the  crowd 
besought  more  vigorous  neighbours  to  fling  their  con- 
tributions for  them ;  others  openly  shed  tears  because 
they  had  nothing  to  give.  And  when  the  hymn  ceased 
and  the  spoil  was  counted,  Jemmy,  his  face  shining 
with  joyful  tears,  announced  to  the  crowd  that  the 
collection  amounted  to  £3  15^.  4f d.  This  statement 
made  quite  a  sensation  among  the  audience,  and  the 
rest  of  that  meeting  was  a  time  to  remember.  While 
one  brother  or  sister  was  busy  singing  or  speaking  of 
the  boundless  love  of  the  Father  as  evidenced  in  the 
sending  of  his  Son,  the  others  were  kept  fully  em- 
ployed in  hearing  earnest  appeals  for  more  light  in  the 
way,  more  knowledge  of  this  wonderful  salvation  for 
all.  And  the  best  of  it  all  was  the  utter  absence  of 
noise,  of  factitious  excitement  such  as,  alas !  too  often 
disfigures  meetings  of  the  kind  and  beguiles  men  and 
women  into  mistaking  it  for  a  change  of  heart.  And 
when,  after  nearly  three  hours  of  preaching,  prayer, 
and  singing,  the  almost  exhausted  little  group  invited 
all  present  to  sing  Praise  God  from  Whom  all  Bless- 
ings Flow,  there  was  hardly  one  of  all  the  great  crowd 
assembled  who  did  not  attempt  to  add  his  or  her  voice 
to  the  swell  of  thanksgiving.  But,  better  still,  six  new 
adherents  signified  in  unmistakable  terms  their  will- 
ingness to  become  members  of  the  company  of  God's 
children,  only  asking  humbly  for  such  help  and 
teaching  as  the  preachers  could  give  them.  Their 
names  and  addresses  were  taken.  Alas !  there  was 
no  room  in  Jemmy's  little  front  parlour  to  invite 

59 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

them  there  for  further  talk  on  the  all-important  sub- 
ject, but  that  hindrance  only  stimulated  the  resolve 
of  all  the  disciples  to  spare  no  effort  in  order  to  get 
the  "  Hall "  ready  soon  for  the  reception  of  worship- 
pers. 

So  the  little  band  moved  off  the  fast-darkening 
common,  weary  almost  to  dropping  in  body,  but  in 
soul  so  happy,  so  uplifted,  that  it  may  well  be  doubted 
whether  among  all  London's  seething  millions  there 
were  any  hearts  lighter  than  theirs.  When  they 
reached  Jemmy's  door  and  shook  hands  before  sepa- 
rating for  the  night,  they  were  nearly  speechless, 
almost  unable  to  murmur  the  usual  "  Good-night  and 
God  bless  ye."  And  long  after  they  had  departed  little 
groups  of  their  late  hearers  still  remained  eagerly 
discussing  the  wonderful  things  they  had  seen  and 
heard. 

Besides  these  things,  there  were  in  six  poor  homes 
adjacent  that  night  to  be  found  a  man  or  woman  to 
whom  the  doors  of  the  kingdom  had  been  opened, 
who  for  the  first  time  in  their  lives  had  realized 
the  transcendent  fact  of  the  Fatherhood  of  God. 
Those  intimate  with  them  looked  upon  them  curiously, 
marvelling  mightily  what  strange  thing  had  come  to 
pass.  But  to  such  inquiries  as  were  made,  inquiries 
which  usually  took  the  form  of  "  Ain't  you  well  ? " 
they  returned  brief,  quiet  answers,  speaking  like  peo- 
ple under  the  influence  of  a  great  awe.  As,  indeed, 
they  might  well  do,  seeing  that  they  had  but  newly 
entered  the  timeless  state,  had  opened  their  eyes  upon 
the  life  that  is  everlasting.  If  any  of  my  readers  feel 
that  this  language  is  incomprehensible  or  ill-chosen, 
I  can  only  hope  that  they  will  soon  learn,  in  the  only 
manner  possible,  that  it  is  but  the  simple  statement  of 

60 


A  Sunday  Evening 

a  fact  that  is  occurring  continually  around  us,  not  one 
whit  more  mysterious  than  ordinary  birth,  and  as  ab- 
solutely necessary  to  eternal  life  as  birth  is  to  the  life 
which  so  many  myriads  of  us  bear  with  pain  and  grief 
beyond  telling. 


61 


CHAPTER  VIII 

PREPARING   THE   SANCTUARY 

LONG  and  loudly  knocked  the  policeman  at  Jem- 
my's door  the  next  morning  before  his  assault  upon 
the  knocker  penetrated  the  heavy  slumbers  of  that 
worthy  disciple.  For  it  had  been  close  upon  mid- 
night before  he  sought  his  bed,  having  sat  long  over 
his  frugal  supper  telling  enthusiastically  to  his  wife 
the  glorious  happenings  of  the  day.  It  was  a  peculi- 
arity of  Mrs.  Maskery's  that  while,  as  we  have  seen, 
intensely  sarcastic  at  her  husband's  expense  and  a  bit- 
ter critic  of  his  obvious  shortcomings,  she  yet  took  a 
certain  proprietorial  delight  in  his  successes  in  the 
gospel  field.  Doubtless  she  felt  that  in  some  dim,  in- 
definite manner  she  enjoyed  a  vicarious  goodness  ;  that 
Jemmy's  unquestionable  merit  in  a  Christian  direc- 
tion partly  communicated  itself  to  her  as  his  wife.  She 
listened  with  much  interest  on  Sunday  nights  to  his 
fervent,  joyful  descriptions  of  the  meeting,  putting  in 
a  shrewd  remark  at  intervals,  and  occasionally  uttering 
some  perfectly  blistering  condemnation  upon  some 
brother  or  sister  whose  proceedings  had  met  with  her 
disapproval.  About  the  new  departure  she  offered  no 
opinion  ;  she  was  evidently  taking  time  to  consider  it  in 
all  its  bearings.  And  this  was  rather  disconcerting  to 
Jemmy,  who  was  evidently  anxious  as  to  how  far  his 
collecting  money  in  the  open  air  would  commend  itself 
to  her. 

62 


Preparing  the  Sanctuary 

Bang,  bang,  crash,  crash  went  the  knocker.  Mrs. 
Maskery  awoke  first,  and  grasping  the  situation,  gave 
her  utterly  oblivious  spouse  a  spiteful  dig  with  her 
elbow,  saying :  "  Now,  then,  are  you  goin'  to  git  up 
or  not?  'Ere's  the  pleeceman  raisin'  th'  'ole  neigh- 
bourhood a-tryin'  t'  beat  some  sense  into  your  thick 
head.  Get  up,  d'ye  'ear."  Thus  admonished,  Jemmy 
rolled  out  of  bed  and  stumbled  to  the  window,  throw- 
ing the  lower  sash  up  and  calling  sleepily :  "  All  right, 
Joe."  "Oh,  it  is,  is  it?"  answered  the  policeman. 
"  Well,  that's  a  comfort  to  know.  I  thought  you  was 
dead.  It's  four  o'clock,  an'  you  ain't  got  much  time  to 
waste  if  you're  goin'  t'  sweep  them  boiler-tubes  afore 
six.  Good-mornin'."  And  away  went  the  speaker  to 
perform  his  fantasia  upon  some  other  sleepy  man's 
door.  Goaded  into  activity  by  a  running  fire  of  sar- 
casm from  his  wife,  Jemmy  was  out  of  the  house  in 
twenty  minutes,  and,  only  stopping  a  minute  or  two 
for  a  ha'porth  of  scalding  coffee  and  a  ha'penny  slice 
of  bread  and  margarine  at  the  corner  stall,  was  soon 
busy  at  the  onerous  task  of  cleaning  the  flues  of  a  huge 
boiler  at  an  adjacent  factory. 

It  was  a  busy  morning  for  him — so  busy  that  before 
he  returned  to  his  home  eleven  o'clock  had  struck,  and 
he  was,  besides  being,  as  he  said,  so  black  that  a  piece 
of  charcoal  would  make  a  white  mark  on  him,  very 
tired.  But  he  was  full  of  joy,  because,  having  done 
such  a  good  morning's  work,  he  felt  free  to  devote  the 
rest  of  the  day  to  what,  after  all,  was  the  main  business 
of  his  life,  the  service  of  the  Master.  The  very  thought 
of  it  rested  him,  and,  without  waiting  for  anything  else 
to  crop  up  in  the  way  of  orders,  he  "  cleaned  himself " 
and  donned  his  best  clothes.  Then,  secretly  rejoicing 
at  the  thought  that  Mrs.  Maskery  was  out  doing  some 

63 


f    The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

small  shopping,  he  made  his  way  promptly  to  the  pro- 
prietor of  the  cow-shed,  and  in  a  voice  unsteady  with 
emotion  professed  his  readiness  to  become  the  tenant 
of  the  premises  at  an  annual  rental  of  £15,  payable 
quarterly,  and  to  do  all  that  might  be  necessary  to 
make  the  place  fit  for  his  purpose.  But  at  the  outset 
of  the  negotiations  Jemmy's  faith  was  put  to  a  some- 
what severe  test.  The  landlord  refused  to  listen  to 
any  less  term  being  entered  upon  than  seven  years,  and 
he  also  required  two  other  persons  to  associate  them- 
selves with  Jemmy  in  the  responsibility  of  finding  the 
rent.  This  latter  demand  was  made,  of  course,  because 
he  knew  Jemmy  well,  and  did  not  for  one  moment 
believe  in  his  ability  to  pay  another  £15  yearly.  The 
strain  only  lasted  a  minute ;  then  Jemmy's  face  cleared 
again,  and  he  agreed  to  the  proposals,  feeling  sure 
that  he  could  find  easily  two  brethren  who  would 
become  his  co-trustees.  Handsel  money  was  at  once 
paid,  and  the  bargain  so  far  concluded. 

Armed  with  the  key  of  the  place,  Jemmy  hastened 
thither  at  once,  as  if  treading  the  clouds.  We  had  bet- 
ter accompany  him  and  view  the  premises.  In  their 
entirety  they  consisted  of  an  oblong  brick  building 
with  a  slated  roof  rising  from  both  sides  to  a  ridge  in 
the  centre.  One  end  of  it  abutted  upon  the  back-yard 
walls  of  the  houses  in  Wren  Lane,  the  other  was 
bounded  by  an  open  yard  fenced  in  by  tall  palings  and 
prolonged  to  a  sharp  angle.  It  was  approached  on 
either  side  from  Wren  Lane  by  narrow  alleys,  at  the 
entrances  to  which  rooms  had  been  built  across  from 
the  adjacent  houses,  forming  low  archways  and  mak- 
ing the  place  gloomy  in  the  extreme.  Of  course  it  was 
no  part  of  the  vestry's  duty  to  either  clean  or  repair 
these  alleys ;  equally,  of  course,  they  did  not  need  light- 

64 


Preparing  the  Sanctuary 

ing  out  of  the  parish  funds.  Inside,  the  building  was 
divided  by  a  brick  partition  running  right  across  it 
from  side  to  side  and  cutting  off  a  third  of  its  space. 
It  was  this  third  which  Jemmy  had  just  agreed  to  take 
a  lease  of ;  the  remaining  two-thirds  would  still  do  duty 
as  a  stable  for  several  horses  and  a  donkey.  There 
was  a  large  door  admitting  into  either  side  of  the 
stable,  but  only  one  small  door  opening  to  the  "  Hall." 

And  when  Jemmy  opened  this  door  and  gazed 
within,  it  was,  besides  being  dark  as  the  inside  of  a 
coal  sack,  full  of  so  foul  an  atmospheric  mixture  that 
even  the  sweep's  seasoned  breathing  apparatus  pro- 
tested, and  he  was  obliged  to  retreat  for  a  while,  leav- 
ing the  door  wide  open.  When,  presently,  he  was  able 
to  enter,  he  found  that  the  floor  was  a  quagmire,  the 
walls  were  heavily  laden  with  slimy  fungoid  growths 
of  hideous  appearance,  and  the  one  window  (in  the 
roof)  was  so  encrusted  with  dirt  that  it  was  no  easy 
matter  to  distinguish  it  as  a  window.  In  short,  the 
general  inlook  was  amply  sufficient  to  have  daunted 
any  less  sanguine,  courageous  soul  than  Jemmy's. 
But  he  saw  beyond  the  filth,  the  squalor,  and  the 
gloom.  The  place  appeared  to  him  as  it  would  pres- 
ently be,  made  beautiful  by  the  loving  labours  of  the 
church,  and  he  was  in  no  wise  discouraged. 

He  had  a  pleasant  little  habit  of  holding  conversa- 
tion with  himself  when  alone,  a  habit  for  which  he  was 
often  twitted  by  his  intimates,  but  one  which  he  laugh- 
ingly asserted  was  a  source  of  great  delight  to  him, 
especially  as  he  was  wont  to  vary  it  continually  by 
talking  to  his  Master.  So  now  he  said,  thrusting  both 
hands  deep  into  his  pockets :  "  Well,  Jemmy,  ole  man, 
you  got  yer  work  cut  aht  for  ye  'ere  an'  no  mistake. 
Fust  of  all  we  mus'  git  this  yere  muck  dug  aht  from 

65 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

underfoot  an'  carted  away  somewheres;  blessed  if  I 
know  wherever  we  sh'll  shoot  it.  Oh,  yus,  I  do  though  ; 
Sammy  Corkran,  the  gardener,  '11  be  glad  of  it  if  we'll 
shoot  it  w'ere  'e  wants  it,  for  it's  almost  pure  cow- 
dung.  These  yere  walls  '11  'ave  ter  be  scraped  right 
inter  th'  very  bricks,  well  lime-washed,  an'  then,  if  it'll 
run  to  it,  we  mus'  have  'em  clapboarded.  Cost  about 
thirty  bob  at  six  bob  a  square,  I  s'pose.  Then  we'll 
want  a  lot  o'  soda  for  that  there  roof ;  that'll  be  th'  wust 
job  of  all,  I  reckon,  'cause  it's  reglar  'ung  wiv  dirt. 
But  bless  th'  Lord,  if  our  'earts  is  in  th'  work  we'll 
soon  alter  the  look  o'  th'  place.  Lord  stir  up  th' 
brethring,  yus,  an'  th'  sisters  too,  like  Ne'emyer  did 
of  old,  and  don't  let  there  be  any  'angin'  back  wotever. 
Now,  lemme  see,  I  mus'  go  an'  borry  some  barrers  an' 
shovels  an'  scrapers  an'  planks  an'  buckets,  an'  see 
about  a  'orse  an'  cart  fur  th'  dung.  Got  no  time  t' 
mooch  about  'ere  any  longer."  So  saying,  he  sprang 
outside,  locked  the  door,  and  trotted  off  at  his  best  gait. 
For  the  next  two  hours,  then,  Jemmy  was  full  of 
business,  "  borrying "  such  tools  as  he  knew  were 
necessary,  and  ordering  materials  against  the  grand 
onslaught  to  be  made  that  evening.  And  it  was  not 
until  everything  was  fairly  in  train  that  he  was  sud- 
denly aware  of  a  certain  vacant  feeling  at  the  pit  of 
his  stomach,  warning  him  that  his  healthy  body  re- 
quired a  little  attention  as  well  as  his  soul.  Having 
threepence  of  his  own  about  him,  he  turned  into  a 
coffee-shop  and  ordered  a  "  pint  o'  corfee  an'  three 
slices  "  for  his  refreshment.  His  order  was  filled  by  a 
strapping  young  woman,  who,  when  she  had  set  the 
food  and  drink  before  him,  said  shyly :  "  Mr.  Maskery, 
I  was  at  your  meetin'  last  night,  an'  I — I  made  up 
my  mine  to  do  as  you  arsked — get  saved."  Before  she 

66 


Preparing  the   Sanctuary 

had  finished  her  brief  pronouncement  the  girl's  face 
was  crimson  and  her  eyes  running  over,  but  Jemmy, 
utterly  forgetting  his  bodily  needs,  sprang  up,  seized 
her  hands  and  shouted,  "  Glory,  sister,  praise  the 
Lord !  "  so  loudly  that  two  or  three  other  customers, 
who  were  stolidly  feeding  in  the  little  stalls,  rose  up  and 
peered  over  to  see  what  the  noise  was.  And  the  shop- 
keeper also,  hearing  something  unusual,  came  out 
from  the  kitchen,  his  face  blank  with  astonishment. 
His  expression  of  amaze  deepened  when  Jemmy,  en- 
tirely carried  away  by  his  gratitude,  lifted  up  his  voice 
and  thanked  the  Lord  for  his  mercies,  not  forgetting  to 
implore  him  to  make  the  opportunity  fruitful  of  bless- 
ing to  all  those  who  were  present.  The  poor  girl  felt 
full  of  embarrassment,  yet  experienced  a  certain  re- 
lief also,  because  now  the  step  she  had  dreaded  tak- 
ing, the  public  avowal  of  faith  in  God,  had  been  taken 
for  her,  and,  compared  with  that  first  plunge,  the  rest 
was,  she  thought,  comparatively  easy. 

The  upshot  of  this  little  episode  was  that,  after  ex- 
planation from  Jemmy,  two  customers  and  the  shop- 
keeper, while  disclaiming  stoutly  any  idea  of  becoming 
psalm-singers,  promised  to  come  round  that  evening 
and  assist  in  the  work.  Then  Jemmy  bethought  him 
again  of  his  food,  turning  to  it  with  a  relish  which 
made  the  cold  "  corfee "  and  bread  and  butter  a 
sumptuous  repast  full  of  celestial  flavour.  And  having 
eaten  and  drunk,  he  departed,  to  remind  the  church  of 
the  grand  event  to  take  place  that  evening,  and  to 
acquaint  them  with  the  progress  he  had  made.  By 
the  time  he  had  done  so  it  was  six  o'clock,  and  he  must 
needs  hurry  home  to  change  his  clothes  and  get  some 
tea.  During  that  meal  Mrs.  Maskery,  her  temper  ex- 
ceptionally sharpened,  poured  forth  a  running  fire  of 

67 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

comment  upon  his  extraordinary  activity,  interspersed 
with  ironical  wishes  that  he  would  be  only  half  as  ener- 
getic in  his  own  business  as  he  was  in  what  she  called 
other  people's.  But  she  might  as  well  have  saved  her 
breath.  The  happy  little  fellow  heard  her  unheed- 
ingly ;  it  might  have  been  a  bumble-bee  droning  in  his 
ear  for  all  he  knew  of  the  import  of  her  words.  At 
last,  feeling  outraged  beyond  measure  by  what  she 
felt  was  his  contemptuous  silence,  her  temper  boiled 
up  into  fury,  and  seizing  him  by  the  collar  with  her 
left  hand  she  dealt  him  two  or  three  vicious  blows  on 
the  side  of  the  head  with  her  flat  right  hand  so  that  his 
ears  rang  again.  Leaping  to  his  feet,  Jemmy  shouted : 
"  Why,  Jenny,  you've  'it  me.  I'm  so  sorry,  my  gal, 
'cause  I  know  'ow  bad  you'll  feel  about  it  presen'ly. 
Now  I'm  orf.  Gord  bless  ye,  ole  dear,  Gord  bless  ye," 
and  making  a  dash  at  the  door  he  vanished. 

Straight  as  a  homing  bee  he  made  for  the  cow- 
shed off  Wren  Lane,  only  stopping  at  an  oil-shop  to 
buy  a  pound  of  candles.  When  he  arrived  he  was 
delighted  to  find,  blocking  up  the  door  of  the  newly 
taken  premises,  a  collection  of  shovels,  barrows,  buck- 
ets, and  planks.  Hardly  had  he  noticed  them  before 
several  figures — four  men  and  one  woman — emerged 
from  the  gloom  and  approached  him,  saying  timidly : 
"  We're  come  t'  'elp  if  there's  anything  we  can  do." 
"Do!"  shouted  Jemmy.  "I  should  fink  ye  could  do 
somefink.  You  just  wait  till  I  gets  inside  an'  makes  a 
light  an'  then  you'll  see."  As  he  spoke  he  was  exceed- 
ingly busy  unlocking  the  door,  and,  having  gained  ad- 
mission, he  soon  lit  up  the  den  with  his  candles,  stuck 
wherever  a  projection  could  be  found.  Then,  mus- 
tering his  forces,  he  set  them  to  work  excavating  the 
filthy  flooring  and  wheeling  it  out  to  where  a  wagon 

68 


Preparing  the  Sanctuary- 
was  waiting  to  receive  it.  The  helpers,  both  men  and 
women,  toiled  like  beavers,  and  the  work,  unsavoury 
as  it  was,  went  on  with  marvellous  celerity,  so  that  in 
less  than  two  hours  the  overlaying  mass  of  dung  had 
been  removed  and  a  comparatively  clean  substratum  of 
gravel  was  reached.  But,  before  this  desirable  con- 
.summation  was  attained,  there  were  several  willing 
hands  employed  scraping  the  walls  as  if  they  would 
scrape  them  away,  while  those  who  had  any  skill  in 
carpentry  were  busy  measuring  the  floor  for  its  planks 
and  the  walls  for  clapboarding. 

Meanwhile,  Jemmy  and  Saul,  like  two  immense 
bats,  were  balancing  themselves  precariously  over- 
head, exploring  the  unspeakably  dirty  recesses  of  the 
roof,  and  occasionally  sending  down  showers  of  rub- 
bish upon  the  toilers  below,  to  their  huge  delight,  ap- 
parently. By  ten  o'clock  a  tremendous  change  had 
been  wrought  in  the  appearance  of  the  place  through 
the  removal  of  the  accumulation  of  dirt.  In  fact,  as 
Jemmy  said,  the  back  of  the  work  had  been  broken. 
And  as  all  who  were  toiling  there,  with  the  exception 
of  Saul,  had  been  hard  at  work  all  day  as  well,  there 
was  a  noticeable  flagging  in  their  efforts.  But  just  as 
some  of  them  were  considering  whether  they  might 
not  now  feel  themselves  at  liberty  to  go  home,  a  cry 
of  delight  was  raised  by  one  of  the  younger  members 
at  the  advent  of  an  emissary  from  a  neighbouring  fish- 
shop  with  a  tin  pail  full  of  stewed  eels,  a  load  of  basins 
and  spoons,  and  a  basket  of  slices  of  bread.  An  im- 
promptu table  was  rigged  up,  and  in  five  minutes  all 
hands  were  busy  enjoying  Saul's  bounty.  A  short, 
emphatic  thanksgiving  from  Jemmy  followed.  Then 
the  old  doxology  was  sung,  and  with  happy  hearts 
the  volunteers  dispersed  to  their  several  homes. 

69 


CHAPTER  IX 

A    BUSY    WEEK 

HOWEVER  Jemmy  got  through  the  week  that  fol- 
lowed I  cannot  tell  you.  Never  in  all  his  life  had  he 
been  engaged  in  an  operation  of  such  magnitude  be- 
fore, never  had  he  realized  how  money  melts  away  like 
snow  under  a  blazing  sun  when  one  is  renovating  the 
interior  of  a  long-neglected  building  and  transforming 
it  into  something  that  it  was  never  intended  for.  He 
was  up  every  morning  at  four,  and  from  thence  until 
he  sank  into  his  bed  at  eleven,  or  thereabouts,  he 
seemed  to  be  crowding  into  each  hour  ninety  minutes 
of  hard  labour.  For,  although  he  did  not  dare  to  say 
so  to  any  one — pooh-poohed  the  idea,  in  fact,  when 
other  people  only  so  much  as  hinted  at  it — he  had 
high  hopes  of  seeing  the  sanctuary  ready  for  worship 
by  Saturday  evening.  And  by  dint  mainly  of  the  self- 
sacrificing  labours  of  himself  and  Saul,  it  came  about 
that  on  Saturday  the  bright  sunshine  of  the  autumn 
morning  shone  down  through  the  limpid  panes  of  the 
roof  window  on  to  a  place  so  transformed  that  one  of 
its  ancient  denizens  would  certainly  have  refused  to 
enter  it,  much  less  have  given  any  milk  there. 

The  once  fetid  quagmire  of  the  floor,  cleansed  even 
down  to  the  gravel  that  underlaid  it,  was  neatly 
boarded  in  with  well-fitting  planks,  the  aforetime 
grimy  sweating  walls  were  invisible  beneath  well-var- 

70 


A  Busy   Week 


nished  panelling  of  clapboards,  and  a  tiny  vestry  had 
even  been  contrived  wherein  might  be  kept,  not  vest- 
ments, but  such  documents  as  the  "  church  "  needed. 
As  the  apartment  was  wider  across  the  building  than 
it  was  lengthwise  (to  be  precise,  the  room  was  twenty- 
four  feet  wide  by  only  fourteen  feet  long),  Jemmy 
had  decided  to  have  the  reading-desk  at  one  side  in- 
stead of  across  the  end  of  the  room.  Sounds  rather 
complicated,  but  I  think  you  will  see  what  I  mean. 
That  same  reading-desk,  solidly  built  of  pitch-pine  by 
a  local  carpenter  and  brought  as  his  offering  towards 
the  new  hall,  was  the  pride  and  delight  of  Jemmy's 
heart.  Then  there  were  eight  forms  for  seats,  four 
Windsor-chairs  for  the  platform,  a  tiny  erection  behind 
the  reading-desk,  while  the  "  table  "  consisted  of  half 
a  dozen  clapboards  neatly  joined  and  a  couple  of 
trestles  to  stand  it  upon.  Thus  it  could  easily  be  put 
out  of  the  way  when  not  needed,  as  at  ordinary  gospel- 
meeting  times. 

In  addition  to  these  fitments  the  gas  was  laid  on. 
What  Joey  Parker,  the  local  gas-fitter,  could  do  in  the 
way  of  mollifying  the  rapacious  gas  company  had  been 
done,  but  alas !  it  must  be  admitted  that  this  item  was 
a  serious  one  after  all.  Nevertheless,  Jemmy  consoled 
himself  with  the  feeling  that  the  outlay  was  well  worth 
the  result  when  he  saw  the  bright  gleam  of  the  second- 
hand lamp  above  the  door,  and  spelled  out  the  gay 
scarlet  letters  upon  it  announcing  to  all  who  chose  to 
read,  that  this  was  the  "  Wren  Lane  Gospel  Mission, 
J.  Maskery,  Supt."  A  friend  in  the  city,  who  dealt  in 
such  things,  made  the  church  a  present  of  two  dozen 
Sankey's  hymn-books  and  a  dozen  Bibles,  and  behold, 
the  "  hall  "  was  an  accomplished  fact. 

Five  shillings  more  than  the  whole  amount  which 

6 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

had  been  collected  was  spent,  but  that  deficiency  was 
made  up  by  Saul  with  great  good-will,  delighted,  as  he 
said,  to  be  able  to  put  his  money  to  so  good  a  use.  I 
must  not  forget  to  state  also  that  the  first  quarter's 
rent — £3  1 $s. — had  been  paid  in  advance  by  the  mutual 
agreement  of  the  three  trustees — Jemmy,  Brother  Sal- 
mon, and  Jemmy's  father,  old  "  Pug  "  Maskery,  who 
now  appears  on  the  scene  for  the  first  time.  And  as  he 
and  his  brother  are  destined  to  play  an  important  part 
in  our  humble  narrative,  it  may  not  be  amiss  to  devote 
a  few  lines  to  describing  them  upon  their  introduction 
to  the  reader. 

Thirty-five  years  before  the  time  of  which  I  am 
writing  there  had  been  in  the  purlieus  of  Walworth  an 
area  of  so  vile  a  character  that  it  was  not  surpassed  in 
its  bad  eminence  by  any  of  the  other  London  Alsatias. 
Into  its  precincts  a  single  policeman  never  ventured, 
even  two  did  not  dare  to  visit  its  intricacies  except 
by  day.  The  inhabitants  were  principally  half-bred 
gipsies  and  Irish,  with  a  sprinkling  of  low  Londoners 
ripe  for  anything — from  rat-hunting  to  robbery  and 
murder.  I  am  not  going  to  specify  its  whereabouts 
particularly,  but  those  devoted  missionaries  by  whose 
labours  it  has  been  greatly  altered  for  the  better  will 
know  it  full  well  without  me  being  more  explicit. 

Chief  among  the  leaders  in  dark  deeds  in  this  ter- 
rible neighbourhood  were  the  two  brothers,  Pug  and 
Jack  Maskery.  They  were  both  undersized  men,  Pug, 
especially,  and  unless  you  were  skilled  in  physiog- 
nomy, rather  insignificant-looking.  But,  given  the 
requisite  provocation  and  stimulus  of  liquor,  the  pair 
have  often  been  known  to  reduce  the  entire  fittings 
of  a  public-house  bar  to  a  mass  of  wreckage,  routing 
utterly  all  the  forces  sent  against  them.  Often  has 

72 


A  Busy  Week 


Pug  been  pounced  upon  by  several  sturdy  men  and 
borne  to  the  earth  amid  a  writhing  entanglement  of 
legs  and  arms,  out  of  which  he  would  presently  emerge 
with  scarcely  a  shred  of  clothing  upon  his  body,  his 
flesh  torn  and  bleeding,  but  the  glint  of  his  steely  blue 
eye  undimmed  and  the  stern  set  of  his  thin  lips  un- 
relaxed.  Over  and  over  again  has  it  taken  six  police- 
men to  convey  him  to  the  station,  and  twice  he  has 
been  known  to  break  away  from  even  that  stalwart 
body-guard  at  the  very  statiqr^door  and,  sending  them 
reeling  in  every  direction  by  his  lightning-like  blows, 
has  disappeared  up  one  of  the  adjacent  alleys  amid 
the  uproarious  cheers  of  the  lookers-on. 

And  his  brother,  although  not  quite  so  regardless 
of  bodily  injury  to  himself,  was  little,  if  any,  his  inferior 
in  fighting  prowess.  He  was  the  inventor,  of  a  pe- 
culiarly effective  form  of  attack  disguising  itself  under 
the  appearance  of  a  helpless  invitation  to  assault.  He 
had  a  broad,  bland  face  with  a  fringe  of  scanty  red 
hair  far  under  the  chin  and  running  up  to  his  ears,  and 
when  he  was  about  "  half-cocked  "  he  generally  as- 
sumed a  look  as  of  some  just  awakened  child,  so  full 
of  pathetic  inquiry  did  it  seem  to  be.  This  mild  mask 
was  most  effectual  with  the  occasional  visitor  from 
some  other  slum,  who,  primed  with  the  ultra-poison- 
ous tipple  sold  in  the  various  houses  used  by  the  in- 
habitants of  this  plague-spot,  was  looking  almost  wist- 
fully for  some  one  upon  whom  he  could  pour  out  his 
rapidly  rising  tide  of  murderous  activity.  To  such  a 
one  would  Jack  appeal,  flinging  wide  his  arms  and 
holding  up  his  face :  "  'It  me,  then,  w'y  don'tcher ;  'it 
me  an'  'ave  done  wiv  it."  Seldom  was  such  an  appeal 
made  in  vain.  The  would-be  assailant  would  strike 
out  savagely  at  that  smooth,  childish  face,  but  to  his 

73 


The   Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

horror  it  would  recede  before  his  blow  like  a  phan- 
tom. For  Jack  could  simultaneously  fling  one  leg  far 
out  behind  him,  let  his  head  fall  back  at  an  apparently 
impossible  angle,  and  at  the  same  moment  bring  the 
other  foot  up  with  terrible  force,  striking  his  enemy 
under  the  chin  and  often  fracturing  his  jaw. 

Needless,  perhaps,  to  say  that  there  were  few 
who  required  a  second  application  to  complete  their 
discomfiture ;  but,  whether  they  did  or  not,  Jack  always 
recovered  his  balance  with  a  spring  and  fell  upon 
them,  beating,  biting,  and  kicking  like  a  devil-pos- 
sessed ape  more  than  a  man,  and  it  took  considerable 
force  always  to  pry  him  off  his  prey.  Yet,  take  him 
all  round,  he  was  not  nearly  so  formidable  as  his 
smaller  brother  Pug,  who,  under  the  influence  of 
ungovernable  Berserker  fury,  would  think  little  of 
biting  pieces  out  of  a  drinking-glass  and  crunching 
them  up  between  his  teeth  as  if  they  were  crusts  of 
bread. 

Both  these  worthies  were  sweeps — at  least,  chim- 
ney-sweeping was  their  ostensible  means  of  livelihood. 
Both  had  been  climbing  boys  in  the  days  when  that 
horrible  iniquity  toward  children  was  permitted,  and 
both  earned  a  great  many  dishonest  pounds  in  peculiar 
by-paths  of  horse-chanting,  frequenting  race-meetings, 
and  "  general  dealing."  Yet  it  must  in  justice  be  said 
that  neither  of  them  were  thieves,  and  to  call  either 
of  them  so  would  have  been  to  place  the  utterer  of  the 
epithet  in  great  personal  danger. 

When  both  of  them  were  in  the  heyday  of  their 
ferocious  powers  Richard  Weaver  came  to  conduct 
a  mission  in  Penrose  Street,  Wai  worth,  and  was  won- 
derfully blessed  of  God  in  getting  hold  of  some  of 
the  most  dangerous  characters  in  the  neighbourhood. 

74 


A  Busy   Week 


This  conversion  of  tigers  into  lambs,  for  it  was  noth- 
ing less,  caused  something  like  a  panic  to  seize  upon 
the  denizens  of  South  London  slums,  from  the  New 
Cut  to  Peckham.  It  was  the  theme  of  nightly  dis- 
cussion in  hundreds  of  low  drinking-dens,  but  the  dis- 
puters  could  never  arrive  at  any  clear  idea  of  what 
it  meant,  except  that  many  of  their  most  highly  valued 
chums  were  going  over  to  the  enemy,  and  becoming — 
well,  it  is  impossible  to  set  down  here  what  their  deeply 
chagrined  fellows  called  them.  At  last,  after  a  pro- 
longed and  lurid  argument,  in  which  Pug  had  dis- 
tributed at  least  a  dozen  blue  marks  of  his  disagree- 
ment upon  the  faces  of  his  cronies,  the  two  brothers 
suddenly  announced  their  intention  of  visiting  the 
scene  of  Richard  Weaver's  labours  and  putting  a  com- 
plete stop  to  his  strange  doings.  Fired  by  their  exam- 
ple, a  large  number  of  their  acquaintances  followed 
them,  and  in  due  course,  lifter  refreshing  themselves 
at  several  public-houses  in  the  Walworth  Road  on  the 
way,  the  uncouth  company  reached  the  Hall  just  as 
Richard  Weaver  was  pouring  out  his  soul  in  prayer  to 
the  Most  High  God  for  the  salvation  of  the  sinners 
that  had  gathered  to  hear. 

The  tumultuous  entry  of  that  ribald  crowd  created, 
necessarily,  a  great  disturbance,  but  the  speaker  only 
raised  his  voice  and  grew  more  emphatically  fervent  in 
his  petition,  until,  as  at  a  master  word,  the  uproar 
died  away,  and  the  savages,  for  they  were  hardly  to  be 
designated  by  any  other  name,  wriggled  uneasily  into 
seats  and  remained  in  stupefied  silence.  Suddenly  the 
speaker  passed  from  a  loud  Amen  into  the  announce- 
ment of  a  hymn — 

"Come  thou  Fount  of  every  blessing, 
Tune  my  heart  to  sing  thy  praise." 

75 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

and  without  waiting  for  any  fumbling  among  hymn- 
books  or  preliminary  playing  of  the  tune,  broke  into 
the  song  himself,  being  instantly  joined  by  a  large  num- 
ber of  his  audience  to  whom  both  words  and  music 
were  quite  familiar.  Spellbound,  the  newcomers  sat 
and  listened  to  the  unfamiliar  strains.  Apparently  their 
purpose  in  coming  was  quite  forgotten,  and  when  the 
singing  ceased,  and  the  preacher  immediately  plunged 
into  a  red-hot  torrent  of  eloquence  upon  the  subject  of 
God's  love  for  man,  his  voice  rang  through  the  build- 
ing undisturbed  by  the  faintest  sound. 

For  nearly  an  hour,  the  sweat  streaming  down  his 
shining  face,  he  pleaded,  warned,  exhorted ;  until,  sud- 
denly as  he  had  begun,  he  ceased  his  address,  and  be- 
gan to  pray  that  his  hearers  might  then  and  there  be 
convicted,  converted,  and  receive  the  assurance  of 
everlasting  life.  He  did  not  finish  that  prayer. 
While  yet  in  the  flood-tide'of  it,  a  voice  arose  from  the 
midst  of  his  audience,  a  curious  hoarse  cry  of  "  God 
save  my  soul !  "  It  was  Pug  Maskery,  smitten  to  the 
core  of  his  stony  heart,  and  unable  longer  to  restrain 
himself.  Leaping  to  the  occasion,  the  preacher  spread 
out  his  arms,  calling  in  tones  of  melting  sweetness, 
"  Come,  my  poor  brother,  come  and  be  cleansed.  God 
wants  you,  Christ  died  for  you,  heaven  waits  for  you ; 
come  and  be  happy."  And,  literally  obeying  him,  Pug 
sprang  to  his  feet.  With  the  same  energy  which  he  had 
often  shown  in  bursting  through  a  race-course  crowd, 
he  made  his  way  to  the  platform,  followed  by  his 
brother,  and  falling  upon  their  knees,  the  terrible  pair 
confessed  their  acceptance  of  the  mercy  of  Christ. 

Many  more  of  their  intimates  followed  their  ex- 
ample, making  that  night  one  long  to  be  remembered 
in  Walworth ;  but  of  all  the  trophies  of  grace  collected 

76 


A  Busy  Week 


none  were  so  notable  as  Pug  and  Jack  Maskery. 
Their  desertion  from  the  devil's  army  caused  some- 
thing like  a  panic  in  the  sin-blighted  neighbourhood 
where  they  lived,  especially  when  they  both  showed 
the  same  sturdy  regardlessness  of  all  consequences  in 
the  new  way  as  they  had  always  manifested  in  the  old. 
They  were  both  of  them  utterly  illiterate,  unable  to 
read  or  scrawl  so  much  as  their  own  names.  But  what 
of  that?  They  set  about  learning.  But  meanwhile 
they  preached ;  they  gave  evidence  everywhere  of  the 
great  change  that  had  come  over  them.  And  before 
many  days  had  gone  by  Pug  had  actually  rented  a 
small  iron  building  that  had  been  erected  as  a  mission 
hall  near  his  cottage,  but  had  been  given  up  in  despair, 
and  in  it  commenced  nightly  services  on  his  own  ac- 
count, defraying  all  charges  out  of  his  own  pocket. 
This  he  was  well  able  to  do,  since  he  was  a  tremendous 
worker,  besides  being  a  born  money-getter,  and  as  his 
usual  expenditure  on  drink  had  been  at  the  rate  of 
nearly  £2  per  week  he  had  nearly  the  whole  of  that 
sum  to  devote  to  the  purposes  of  his  new  life.  Jack, 
on  the  other  hand,  although  decidedly  more  intellec- 
tual than  Pug,  had  never  been  able  to  do  more  than 
make  a  bare  living,  no  matter  how  he  schemed.  So, 
unable  to  set  up  a  place  of  his  own,  and  feeling  for 
some  reason  that  Pug  ought  to  be  permitted  his  own 
sphere  of  labour,  Jack  went  about  preaching  inde- 
pendently wherever  he  was  invited,  and  invitations 
were  soon  so  plentiful  that  he  had  much  ado  to  keep 
pace  with  them  and  do  his  daily  work  also.  He  de- 
veloped a  wonderful  power  of  exposition.  Even  be- 
fore he  had  got  into  words  of  two  "  sinnables,"  as  he 
always  called  them,  his  handling  of  a  Scripture  theme 
was  the  amazement  of  many  of  his  hosts  who,  with 

77 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

all  their  education,  could  not  come  anywhere  near  the 
utterly  uneducated  sweep. 

But  we  must  here  leave  these  two  worthies  for  a 
little  and  return  to  Jemmy.  When  Saturday  came  he 
found,  to  his  almost  speechless  delight,  that  all  things 
being  now  ready,  the  Saturday  evening  prayer-meet- 
ing could  be  held  in  the  new  sanctuary.  As  if  fatigue 
was  a  meaningless  word,  he  rushed  hither  and  thither 
issuing  invitations,  his  visage  shining  with  such  joy 
that  only  to  catch  sight  of  it  as  he  trotted  past  made 
strangers  feel  a  glow  at  their  hearts.  Eight  o'clock 
came  and  with  it  the  congregation.  The  whole 
"  church  "  turned  up,  as  well  as  sufficient  visitors  to 
fill  the  little  place  to  its  utmost  seating  capacity,  which 
was  fifty-two.  When  all  had  found  seats  Jemmy 
sprang  to  his  place  on  the  platform,  and,  leaning  over 
the  reading-desk,  while  the  big  tears  of  perfect  happi- 
ness streamed  down  his  face,  gave  out  the  time-hon- 
oured hymn,  All  Hail  the  Power  of  Jesus'  Name.  But 
it  had  no  sooner  been  started  than  the  accumulated 
strain  deprived  him  of  all  power  of  singing,  and  he 
could  only  cling  to  the  reading  desk  and  feebly  mur- 
mur between  his  sobs,  "  Glory,  praise  the  Lord,  praise 
the  Lord !  "  I  know  how  easy  it  is  to  look  down  from 
a  serene  philosophic  height  and  analyze  poor  little 
Jemmy's  ecstasy,  so  easy  to  define  it  as  a  combina- 
tion of  fanaticism,  nervous  excitement,  and  ignorance, 
but  it  came  as  near  perfect  happiness  as  anything  can 
do  in  this  world.  And  in  spite  of  scoffs  of  disbelief 
in  such  heart-quaking  worship,  the  tremendous  fact 
remains  of  the  good  lives  being  lived  behind  it.  Now 
and  then  we  find  it  spurious;  now  and  then  we  find 
scoundrels,  male  and  female,  simulating  it  for  profit. 
But  what  does  that  prove  ?  Only  that  cunning  people 

78 


A  Busy  Week 


consider  it  to  be  well  worth  simulating.  We  do  not 
make  imitations  of  the  false,  but  of  the  true.  And  I 
have  no  doubt  whatever  that  the  superior  persons  who 
dislike  any  such  exhibition  as  Jemmy  was  making  of 
himself  would  have  been  highly  offended  at  the  self- 
sacrificing  enthusiasm  of  the  martyrs,  at  the  fellowship 
with  the  Lord  that  has  so  often  led  men  and  women 
and  children  to  follow  him  whithersoever  he  led. 

The  opening  prayer  was  uttered  by  Pug  Maskery, 
who  with  his  brother  Jack  had  come  in  during  the 
singing  of  the  hymn.  He  had  a  peculiar  voice  that, 
beginning  quietly  in  the  male  register,  suddenly 
jumped  an  octave  as  the  speaker  became  more  fer- 
vent, and  remained  in  that  wonderfully  penetrating 
falsetto  until  he  had  finished.  "  Ho  Lord,"  he  cried, 
"  'oo  is  like  hunto  thee  hin  thy  'Oly  Temple?  'Ow 
marvellous  are  thy  works,  and  thy  goodness  tords  thy 
people.  Thou  'ast  permitted  thy  children  to  set  hup 
hanother  Tabbinacle  hin  the  wilderness.  Yus,  even 
hout  ov  the  dung  'caps  they  'ave  bin  able  to  build  up 
a  sanchwary  w'ere  the  light  of  thy  wusshup  shall  be 
kep'  a-burnin'.  May  the  door  of  it  never  be  opened 
fur  wusshup  but  wot  thy  child'en  shall  git  a  personal 
'old  of  thee ;  may  thy  glory  alwus  be  revealed  unto 
'em  in  'ere  so  as  they  sha'n't  faint  by  the  way,  a-know- 
ing  wot  you've  got  in  store  for  them  'at  loves  thee. 
Han'  when  the  bread  is  broke,  an'  the  wine  poured 
aht,  may  those  'oo  eat  an'  drink  know  fur  a  certainty 
that  you  yourselfs  ben  a-breakin'  an'  a-pourin'  for 
'em.  May  they  see  thee  by  the  heye  an'  feel  thee  by 
the  'and  of  faith  so  astinckly  'at  their  faith  shall  be- 
come certing  knowledge.  May  these  yer  doors  never 
be  hopened  for  the  preachin'  hof  the  blessed  Gorspel 
of  Jesus  wivout  souls  bein'  born  again ;  in  the  years 

79 


to  come  may  thousan's  look  back  to  this  'ere  cow-shed 
as  was,  an'  say  this  is  none  hother  than  the  gate  of 
'eaven.  An'  Lord,  don't  let  anybody  as  works  for 
thee  'ere  do  it  fur  money.  We  knows  an'  luvs  lots  o' 
your  dear  child'en  as  do  preach  for  money,  but  we 
don't  want  'em  'ere.  We  all  on  us  feels  'at  we  owes 
you  all  the  light  of  hour  lives.  We're  yours  fur  service, 
an'  if  you  gives  us  souls  for  our  'ire  we're  mightily 
overpaid.  Fill  all  thy  people  'ere  so  full  of  love  that 
it'll  keep  on  a-bubblin'  up  an'  runnin'  over  all  round 
'em.  An'  don't  let  any  of  'em  be  mean.  Keep  'em 
all  a-payin'  just  a  little  more'n  their  share,  so  's  t'  'elp 
any  pore  brother  or  sister  'at's  dahn  on  their  luck.  An' 
don't  let's  'ave  no  tattlin'  er  mischief-making  'ere, 
Lord.  Do,  dear  Father  God,  keep  thy  people  sweet, 
keep  'em  knit  together  in  the  bon's  of  love,  and  make 
tHis  'ere  little  'ouse  a  centre  of  sunshine  for  all  Rover- 
hive,  for  Christe's  dear  sake.  Hamen." 

His  voice  had  hardly  ceased  when  Saul's  splendid 
barytone  rose  with  Come  Thou  Fount  of  Every  Bless- 
ing, and  the  volume  of  sound,  as  all  joined  in,  was  so 
great  that  it  seemed  as  if  the  walls  must  give  way. 
Then  the  old  tugboat  man  prayed.  And  so  without  a 
pause  the  glorious,  spontaneous  upheaval  of  praise  and 
prayer  went  on  until  10.30.  And  when  the  door  was 
opened  to  let  the  glad  worshippers  out,  behold,  the 
alley  was  full  of  people,  who,  attracted  by  the  unfa- 
miliar sounds  in  such  a  place,  had  come  to  see  what  it 
was  all  about,  and  stayed,  unable  to  go  away.  Then 
might  you  have  seen  Mrs.  Salmon  and  the  two  brothers 
Maskery  and  Jemmy  intensely  busy.  The  outsiders 
were  almost  dragged  within,  an  impromptu  meeting 
was  held  which  lasted  until  midnight,  and  four  un- 
happy ones  professed  to  be  cut  loose  from  their  sins 
and  started  on  the  starry  way  of  life  eternal. 

80 


CHAPTER  X 

THE    FIRST    SUNDAY    IN    THE    NEW    HALL.       MORNING 

HAPPINESS  being  an  entirely  relative  expression, 
meaning  something  different  to  almost  every  indi- 
vidual who  sighs  for  it,  there  may  be  little  use  in  at- 
tempting to  explain  how  entirely  happy  were  the 
various  members  of  the  Wren  Lane  Mission  when  they 
retired  to  their  humble  beds  on  that  eventful  Saturday 
night  or  Sunday  morning.  Jemmy  was  probably  the 
happiest  of  all.  First,  because  his  sunny  soul  seemed 
always  capable  of  absorbing  more  delight  at  any  given 
time  than  the  majority  of  his  fellows;  secondly,  be- 
cause the  dream  of  his  whole  Christian  life  had  been 
realized,  and  he  was  now  in  charge  of  an  actual  "  Hall," 
wherein  soul-saving  and  soul-strengthening  might  be 
carried  on  free  from  the  hampering  hindrances  of  a 
small  home ;  and  thirdly,  because  he  honestly  felt  that 
he  had  been  permitted  to  occupy  a  prominent  place 
among  those  shining  souls  who  loved  God  and  panted 
to  do  him  service. 

Perhaps  it  rather  added  to  than  detracted  from  the 
intensity  of  his  delight  that  when  he  returned  to  his 
home  at  12.15  on  Sunday  morning,  Mrs.  Maskery, 
overburdened  with  her  long  day's  struggle,  met  him 
with  acid  words.  His  bounding  step  and  bright  face 
made  her  feel  resentful.  And  we  must  sympathize 
with  her  a  little.  Only  those  who  have  managed  a 

81 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

small  house  and  a  large  family  on  a  few  precarious 
shillings  a  week  in  a  great  town  know  how  heavy  is 
the  strain  upon  human  endurance,  to  say  nothing  of 
temper.  And  after  a  while  even  a  good  woman,  such 
as  Mrs.  Maskery  undoubtedly  was,  is  apt  to  forget  the 
vast  difference  between  a  husband  who  has  been  out 
besotting  himself  at  a  bar  and  a  husband  who  has 
been  spreading  the  glad  tidings  of  the  kingdom  of 
God.  The  one  salient  fact,  that  the  husband  has  been 
out  of  the  stuffy,  workful  home  enjoying  himself  amid 
congenial  surroundings,  overtops  all  the  others,  and 
the  resultant  complaints,  generally  unjust  and  always 
repented  of,  are  of  a  blistering  character. 

And  on  this  particular  Sunday  morning  Mrs. 
Maskery,  in  addition  to  her  physical  weariness,  was 
fiercely  enduring  the  penalty  of  overtaxed  nerves — 
neuralgia.  So  that  when  Jemmy,  all  aglow  with 
heavenly  enthusiasm,  burst  into  their  stuffy  little 
kitchen  ready  to  pour  out  his  happy  soul  in  glowing 
words,  Mrs.  Maskery,  looking  sourly  at  him,  said :  "  I 
sh'd  like  t'  know  w'are  you've  ben  a-prarncin'  around  to 
till  this  'ere  time  on  a  Sunday  mornin'  ?  "  "  W'y,  you 

ole  dear "  almost  shouted  Jemmy,  coming  towards 

her  with  outstretched  arms.  But  he  did  not  finish  his 
sentence,  for  with  that  curious  perversity  of  our  poor 
humanity,  so  often  seen,  Mrs.  Maskery  screamed  inter- 
ruptingly :  "  Shut  up,  an'  give  me  none  'f  yer  infernal 
'ypocrisy.  'Ere  'ave  I  ben  a-slavin'  an'  a-grindin'  my 
soul  aht  the  'ole  of  this  day  ter  keep  you  an'  yore 
child'en  comfortable,  w'ile  you,  ye  wuthless  villain,  just 
goes  a-gallivantin'  round  with  a  passel  of  fools  a-play- 
ing  chutch.  An'  then  ye  want  to  come  yer  disgustin' 
blarney  over  me  as  if  I  was  a  pore  idjit  'at  didn't  know 
yer.  I'll  tell  yer  wot  it  is,  some  of  these  yer  nights 

82 


The  First  Sunday  in  the  New  Hall 

or  mornin's  you'll  come  'ome  an'  find  me  minus.  I 
sha'n't  be  gone  fur,  only  just  dahn  t'  th'  river  an' 
chucked  myself  in.  An'  it'll  be  yore  fault,  yore  fault, 
d'yeer  ?  "  It  is  impossible  to  convey  by  pen  and  ink 
what  awful  vehemence  the  almost  frantic  woman  put 
into  her  words,  or  the  despairing  scream  with  which 
she  closed  her  last  sentence. 

Poor  Jemmy,  moved  beyond  measure  with  com- 
passion for  her,  and  knowing  how  innocent  he  was, 
made  another  step  towards  her  to  take  her  in  his  arms. 
But  the  unhappy  woman,  blinded  by  her  unreasoning 
rage,  only  clinched  her  fist  and  smote  at  the  bright 
face  with  all  her  might.  Jemmy  reeled  under  the  blow 
and  turned  to  retreat.  But  she  sprang  upon  his  shoul- 
ders like  a  wild-cat,  bore  him  to  the  ground,  and  beat 
his  head  upon  it  twice.  Heaving  her  off  as  if  she  had 
been  a  feather,  he  sprang  to  his  feet  shouting :  "  Glory ! 
I'm  worthy  to  suffer  fur  'Is  sake,  and  I  know  'E'll  fur- 
give  an'  bless  yer,  my  pore  sweet'art,  'cause  ye  don't 
know  wot  you're  a-doin'  of."  So  saying,  he  went 
lightly  upstairs  to  their  little  bedroom,  with  something 
of  the  bliss  of  the  martyr  superadded  to  the  joy  he  had 
brought  home  with  him.  And  in  ten  minutes  he  was 
sleeping  sweetly  as  a  babe,  his  poor  partner,  all  her 
exasperation  gone,  creeping  noiselessly  up  after  she 
thought  him  asleep,  and  taking  elaborate  pains  not  to 
awaken  him. 

Old  Pug  Maskery  had  borne  his  cross,  too,  and 
found  it  far  heavier  than  his  son's.  He  was  eking  out 
a  greatly  lessened  income  in  his  old  age  by  acting  as 
resident  collector  of  rents  and  general  caretaker  of  a 
local  slum,  a  cul-de-sac  behind  a  great  flaunting  pub- 
lic-house consisting  of  about  twenty  mean  little  dwell- 
ings, not  one  of  which  was  ever  empty  for  a  day.  The 

83 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

inhabitants,  male  and  female,  were  addicted  to  orgies, 
generally  on  Saturday  nights,  of  a  particularly  un- 
pleasant and  bloodthirsty  nature,  and  as  their  court 
was  self-contained,  as  it  were,  they  were  free  to  in- 
dulge in  these  savage  exercises  without  interference 
by  the  police  so  long  as  a  fighting  fringe  did  not  over- 
flow into  the  main  thoroughfare.  All  the  denizens 
looked  to  Pug  as  the  arbiter  of  their  disputes,  the  vis- 
ible maintainer  of  order ;  but,  alas !  only  too  frequently, 
while  he  was  endeavouring  to  carry  out  his  onerous 
and  thankless  duties,  he  got  impartially  banged  and 
bruised  by  both  parties  to  whatever  fray  was  going  on. 
So  on  this  Sunday  morning,  when  with  his  heart  full 
of  spring  as  his  poor  lower  limbs  were  of  sciatica,  he 
came  limping  into  the  court,  he  found  it  a  seething 
mass  of  riot,  made  hideous  by  the  shrieking  blas- 
phemies of  drunken  women,  the  hoarse  growlings  of 
dehumanized  men,  and  the  wailing  of  neglected  and 
trodden-upon  children.  His  entrance  was  the  signal 
for  the  attention  of  all  to  be  turned  upon  him,  and  it 
was  not  until  he  had  received  several  ugly  bruises  and 
cuts  that  the  uproar  died  down  and  the  listening  police- 
man in  the  street  outside  strode  away  with  a  sigh  of 
relief. 

Yet  upon  Pug's  soul  these  external  troubles  made 
no  impression.  True,  he  had  been  used  to  such  scenes 
during  the  whole  of  his  stormy  career,  and  was  there- 
fore, perhaps,  less  liable  to  be  horrified  at  them  than 
even  the  most  unsympathetic  outsider ;  but  apart  alto- 
gether from  that  fact,  he  had  arrived  at  that  point  of 
intimacy  with  his  Master  when  the  things  that  are  not 
seen  are  the  only  realities,  and  the  things  that  are  seen 
and  felt  physically  are  mere  fleeting  phantoms. 

To  none  of  the  other  brethren  or  sisters  had  it  been 

84 


The  First  Sunday  in  the  New  Hall 

given  to  suffer  in  this  wise  on  that  Sunday  morning. 
Brother  Salmon  turned  up  at  the  door  of  the  Wren 
Lane  Mission  at  about  10.15,  a  bottle  of  British  port 
sticking  bulkily  out  at  the  tail  of  his  frock-coat,  a 
newspaper-enwrapped  bundle  under  one.  arm,  and  a 
broom  and  duster  in  one  hand.  His  face  wore  an  ex- 
pression of  perfect  contentment,  of  supremest  satis- 
faction. It  was  the  face  of  one  who  had  by  the  sub- 
lime force  of  God's  indwelling  power  completely  laid 
aside  all  the  worrying  hindrances  of  life  that  affect 
the  children  of  men  from  the  gutter  to  the  throne,  who 
moved  serenely  in  an  atmosphere  of  eternity  entirely 
permeated  by  the  peace  of  God.  Unlocking  the  door, 
which  he  fastened  wide  open  so  that  some,  at  least,  of 
the  stable  smell  might  exhale,  he  carefully  laid  aside 
his  coat,  murmuring  as  he  did  so,  "  Must  have  some 
pegs  put  up  for  the  brethren's  garments."  Then,  sol- 
emnly as  any  Levite  cleansing  the  sanctuary  on  Mount 
Zion,  he  plied  broom  and  duster  until  all  traces  of  last 
night's  occupancy  had  disappeared.  Carefully  he  ar- 
ranged the  forms  along  the  sides  of  the  "  Hall,"  then, 
bringing  forward  the  trestles  and  placing  them  in  posi- 
tion, he  gently  laid  the  "  table  "  upon  them,  brought 
the  forms  up  to  its  sides,  and  stepping  back,  contem- 
plated the  effect  with  a  face  that  positively  shone.  The 
table  was  exactly  similar  to  the  arrangement  he  always 
erected  for  the  purpose  of  his  business  of  paper-hang- 
ing in  any  room  that  he  might  be  decorating.  But 
no  comparison  between  the  two  found  a  place  in  his 
mind.  Reverently  he  undid  his  newspaper  parcel  and 
unfolded  a  snowy  white  tablecloth,  which  he  spread 
over  the  board.  Upon  it  he  placed  the  loaf  he  had 
brought,  a  dropsical  tumbler  from  his  coat-tail  pocket, 
and  the  bottle  of  wine.  Hymn-books  were  arranged 

85 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

around  the  table's  edge,  and  then,  all  preparations 
completed,  he  resumed  his  coat  and  fell  upon  his  knees 
to  enjoy  a  restful  time  of  silent  communion  with  his 
Master  before  the  arrival  of  his  brethren  and  sisters. 

Presently  they  began  to  come  in,  and  at  eleven  the 
whole  congregation  was  there — fourteen  of  them. 
Jemmy  bustled  in  last,  his  great  weakness  being  un- 
punctuality,  and,  after  greetings  had  been  exchanged, 
the  humble  worshippers  settled  down  into  their  places 
with  a  feeling  of  great  content  to  commence  their  first 
worship  hour  in  the  new  building.  But  they  were  not 
allowed  to  feel  too  complacent  and  comfortable.  Dur- 
ing the  giving  out  of  the  first  hymn  an  uneasy  donkey 
in  the  adjoining  stable  lifted  up  his  voice,  and  for  a 
time  rendered  the  reader  inaudible.  His  untuneful 
vocal  effort  was  almost  immediately  followed  by  a  tre- 
mendous crash,  some  mischievous  urchin  seeking  an 
outlet  for  his  superabundant  energy  having  hurled  a 
huge  stone  at  the  door  with  all  his  might.  The  noise 
made  all  the  worshippers  jump  and  feel  uneasy ;  but, 
except  for  the  momentary  and  involuntary  movement, 
not  the  slightest  notice  was  taken  of  the  interruption, 
and  the  service  proceeded  on  the  old  familiar  lines. 

But  no  sooner  had  the  solemn  eating  and  drinking 
ended  than  old  Pug  Maskery  arose,  with  his  well-worn 
Bible  open  in  his  hand,  and  announced  that  he  would 
read  a  portion  from  the  Word,  and  say  a  word  thereon 
for  the  brethren  and  sisters'  behoof.  He  chose  the 
chapter  setting  forth  the  dedication  of  Solomon's  tem- 
ple— i  Kings,  viii — and  in  spite  of  his  painfully  manifest 
limitations  in  the  matter  of  reading,  his  extraordinary 
floundering  and  boggling  over  unfamiliar  words,  suc- 
ceeded in  riveting  the  attention  of  his  hearers  upon 
the  wonderful  description  of  the  coming  of  the  Lord 

86 


The  First  Sunday  in  the  New  Hall 

God  to  his  glorious  habitation  in  Jerusalem.  Then, 
laying  down  the  book  and  taking  off  his  spectacles,  the 
once  truculent  old  man  looked  round  upon  his  fellows 
and  said : 

"  Beloved  brethring  an'  sisters,  we  ain't  got  a  tem- 
ple like  Solomon's  was,  but  we've  a-got  a  better  one. 
Not,  mind  yer,  as  I  means  ter  say  anythin'  agin  Splo- 
mon,  or  'is  temple  either,  but  you  know  as  'ow  we  all 
believes  as  the  day  is  come  w'en  it  don't  matter  a 
row  er  pins  w'are  we  wusshups  God  so  long  as  we  does 
wusshup  'im.  I  believe  'at  we  all  feels  'at  if  it  warn't 
fur  the  cold  an'  th'  wet  we  wouldn't  want  no  better 
temple  t'  wusshup  'im  in  than  'is  own  great  temple  of 
out  o'  doors,  the  bootiful  blue  sky  over'ead,  and  th' 
lovely  green  grass  underfoot,  an'  th'  sweet  incense  of 
fresh  growin'  'erbs  hof  th'  field  a-blessin'  our  nosterels. 
But  seein'  as  'e's  placed  us  'ere  thet  carn't  be,  any- 
ways not  in  th'  winter  time,  neither,  seein'  'ow  'is 
enemies  feels  tords  us,  can  we  remember  th'  Lord's 
death  till  'e  comes  in  public.  There  ain't  no  shadder 
of  doubt  in  our  minds,  though — is  they  ? — that  th'  Lord 
'isself  'ave  made  'is  temple  in  our  'earts,  our  poor, 
misbul,  little  shrivelled-up  'earts,  an'  that  that  there 
temple  's  as  much  more  glorious  than  Solomon's  as  a 
man's  better'n  a  piece  of  hallybarster  er  hany  hother 
precious  stone?  'Mother  thing,  bless  'is  'Oly  Name,  'e 
knows  'at  we  shouldn'  be  able  to  wusshup  'im  in  a 
bootiful  buildin'  at  all ;  we  ain't  ben  used  to  it.  We  sh'd 
be  a-lookin'  roun'  at  the  finery  an'  recknin'  up  'ow 
many  pore  'ungry  people  the  cost  on  it  all  'ud  feed,  an' 
w'en  we  got  over  that  we  sh'd  begin  to  feel  stuck  up 
corse  we'd  got  such  a  grand  place,  thinkin'  more  o'  wot 
we  could  see  that  was  temporal  than  wot  we  coodn't  see 
that  was  eternal.  Bless  the  dear  Lord,  brethring  an' 

7  87 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

sisters,  'at  we've  got  a  water-tight  roof  over  our  'eads, 
a  snug  place  w'ere  we  can  all  come  apart  an'  rest  a 
while  'thout  a-disturbin'  of  our  pore  little  'omes  an' 
p'raps  a-makin'  unpleasantness  with  our  wives.  We 
are  thankful,  ain't  we  ?  "  (Loud  chorus  of  "  Amens  " 
and  "  Bless  the  Lords.") 

"  An'  now  I  wants  ter  tell  ye  wot's  in  my  mind 
abaht  this  'ere  place.  I  s'pose  I'm  like  hall  the  rest  o' 
th'  folks,  more  I  gets  more  I  wants ;  'n'  it's  bore  in  on 
me  'at  this  place  ain't  a-goin'  t'  be  near  big  'nuf.  We'll 
'ave  t'  'ave  that  theer  next  place  soon.  Cause  w'y? 
We're  a-goin'  t'  get  the  people  in  'ere  werry  noomrus, 
an'  lots  on  'em  '11  want  baptizin',  an'  we'll  want  our 

own  pool,  an',  an' O  Glory !     Hi  don't  see  no 

end  ner  limit  t'wot  th'  Lord's  a-goin'  t'  do  fur  us  an' 
wiv  us  'slong's  we're  faithful.  That's  it.  Thet's  the 
word  Hi  ben  a-wrastlin'  fur.  '  Be  ye  faithful  unter 
death  'n'  I  will  give  ye  a  crahn  o'  life.'  Yus,  that  means 
as  we've  got  ter  be  faithful  t'  'im  fust,  then  t'  hour 
brethring  an'  sisters,  then  t'  hourselves.  I've  a-seen 
so  many  bright  'opes  fade  just  'cause  men  an'  women 
wasn't  faithful.  They  got  'fraid  lest  somebody  else 
would  be  a-comin'  th'  double  over  'em  in  some  way 
or  other,  'relse  they  got  some  maggit  in  their  'eads 
concernin'  justification  er  sanctification  er  somethin' 
with  a  long,  'ard  name  'at  they  didn't  know  th'  mean- 
in'  of,  an'  they  went  an'  busted  up  the  'ole  meetin' 
'cause  they  couldn't  git  other  people  ter  see  same  as 
they  thought  they  did.  Now,  brethring  an'  sisters, 
don't  you  get  thinkin'  'at  I'm  a-losin'  'ope  'cause  I'm 
a-talking  like  this.  I  ain't.  I'm  a-gettin'  old,  nah,  an' 
fur  many,  many  yeers  th'  goodness  an'  mercy  of  God 
'as  follered  me  all  my  ways.  But  I've  a-learned  'at 
God's  childun  ain't  never  left  to  'emselves  to  do  wot's 

88 


The  First  Sunday  in  the  New  Hall 

wrong.  They  gits  pulled  up  sharp  w'enever  they 
makes  mischief,  an'  if  they  ain't,  w'y  ter  me  that  proves 
as  they  ain't  God's  childun  at  all.  An'  so  I  says  ter 
you,  dear  ones,  be  keerful.  Don't  lissen  t'  houtsiders ; 
don't  believe  hany  hevil  hof  a  brother  'less  you  can't 
'elp  yoreself,  an'  then  go  ter  the  brother  fust  an'  see 
wot  'e's  got  ter  say  afore  you  makes  a  rah.  Don't  be 
mean.  God's  gen'rous,  an'  God's  childun  orter  take 
arter  their  Farther.  If  yore  mean  you  know  very  well 
wot'll  'appen — two  or  free  of  us  '11  'ave  'caps  o'  trubbel 
a-scrapin'  the  rent  o'  th'  place  tergevver.  You  ain't 
got  no  minister  t'  pay ;  y'  ain't  got  no  pew  rents  ter 
pay;  y'  gits  yer  Gospel  mighty  cheap;  jist  see  t'  it 
'at  y'  don't  try  t'  git  it  fur  nothink,  'cos  y'  know  's 
well  's  I  do  'at  wot  don't  corst  y'  nothin'  y'  don't  value 
much  unless  it's  the  salvation  wot  y'  carn't  buy.  Don't 
think  I'm  too  'ard;  please  don't,  fur  I  love  yer  with  all 
my  pore  'art,  I  do  hindeed.  An'  p'raps  all  I've  tried 
ter  s'y  might  be  better  said  in  th'  words  o'  John : '  Little 
childun  love  one  another,  fur  God  is  love.'  " 

The  old  man  sat  down,  tears  flooded  his  scarred  and 
rugged  red  face,  and  even  had  there  been  any  resent- 
ment at  his  outspokenness,  it  must  have  been  effectual- 
ly quenched  by  the  spectacle  of  his  emotion  as  he  strove 
to  restrain  the  torrent  of  his  feelings.  They  all  knew 
his  stormy  history ;  all  felt  sure  that  his  words  were  the 
outcome  of  deepest,  truest  knowledge ;  and  doubtless 
there  were  many  fervent  resolves  made  that  by  the  help 
of  God  the  individual  resolving  would  never  give  God 
cause  to  repent  having  placed  them  in  their  present 
position.  But  for  some  few  minutes  none  of  them 
spoke.  Then  Saul,  rising  diffidently  to  his  feet,  said : 

"  Brethren,  all  our  dear  old  brother's  said  we  must 
reckernize  as  not  only  truth  but  wisdom.  Anyhow, 

89 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

I'm  a-goin'  t'  take  it  t'  heart  I've  got  t'  leave  yer  next 
week,  as  most  of  ye  know,  for  a  long  voyage,  but  I've 
determined  by  God's  help  to  say  a  word  fur  him  every 
day  no  matter  what  it  costes  me.  An'  I'm  a-goin'  t' 
pray  for  all  of  you  an'  the  little  mission  here.  About 
my  half-pay,  you  know — know  I've  left  it  for  the 
benefit  of  the  mission,  or  p'raps  I  ought  to  say  for  my 
own  benefit,  'cause  I  know  it  will  do  me  heaps  of 
good.  An'  I  feel  shore  I  shall  come  back  ter  find  the 
Wren  Lane  Mission  a-flourishin'  like  a  green  bay-tree 
planted  by  a  river  of  livin'  waters.  An'  if  I  don't  come 
back,  the  sea  havin'  claimed  me  for  a  part  of  the  toll 
it  takes  of  its  workers — well,  it's  all  right,  bless  the 
Lord.  I  shall  go  where  I  can  do  ever  so  much  better 
than  ever  I  can  do  here." 

Up  jumped  Jemmy,  almost  shouting :  "  Brethring 
an'  sisters,  my  'eart's  too  full  to  speak  nah.  'Sides, 
Saul  an'  my  farver's  said  all  'at  I'd  ha'  said,  an'  said  it 
better,  too.  But  in  the  open  air  to-night  I  b'lieve  the 
Lord  '11  give  us  all  'earts  t'  feel  an'  tongue  t'  speak  his 
praise.  Let's  conclude  our  wusship  by  singin'  All  Hail 
th'  Power  hof  Jesus'  Name."  Swiftly  all  present  sprang 
to  their  feet,  and  under  Saul's  leadership  sang  the 
grand  old  hymn  with  tremendous  vigour,  if  with  little 
attention  to  time  or  tune.  Then  old  Pug  pronounced 
the  benediction  as  solemnly,  and  doubtless  as  effect- 
ively, as  if  he  had  been  the  Archbishop  of  Canter- 
bury, and  the  first  meeting  in  the  Wren  Lane  Mission 
Hall  was  over.  The  collection  from  sixteen  people 
amounted  to  twelve  and  sixpence,  half-a-crown  of 
which  came  from  Saul  and  two  shillings  from  Pug. 

But  the  members  could  not  so  readily  disperse. 
They  must  needs  discuss  the  establishment  of  a  Sun- 
day-school in  the  afternoon,  and  a  Band  of  Hope  for 

90 


The  First  Sunday  in  the  New  Hall 

some  week  evening.  There  were  no  original  thinkers 
among  them,  and  so,  although  perfectly  independent, 
they  were  compelled  to  proceed  on  orthodox  lines. 
And  if  any  suggestion  had  been  made  to  Pug  of  inno- 
vation in  any  direction  whatever,  he  would  certainly 
have  discountenanced  it  vigorously,  having  had  some 
dire  experiences  in  that  line  during  his  Christian  career. 
So  it  came  to  be  nearly  one  o'clock  before  they  sepa- 
rated for  their  several  homes — that  little  band  of  wor- 
shippers whose  ideas  were  as  simple,  whose  motives 
were  as  pure,  as  those  of  the  first  disciples  of  our  Lord ; 
not  very  respectable,  not  very  knowing,  but  intensely 
in  earnest  to  know  God  and  keep  his  commandments 
in  biblical  fashion.  Moreover,  all  were  looking  for- 
ward with  eager  desire  to  the  evening  when,  in  the 
strength  of  this  close  communion  of  theirs,  they  should 
go  out  to  carry  the  war  into  the  enemy's  country,  un- 
aided by  man,  ill-equipped  in  every  human  detail,  but 
with  an  absolute  certainty  in  every  heart  that  they 
were  fighting  a  winning  battle  under  the  banner  of  the 
Most  High  God. 

At  the  earnest  solicitation  of  Jemmy,  Saul  accom- 
panied him  home  to  dinner.  So  difficult  is  it  for  the 
best  of  us  to  analyze  our  own  motives  and  feelings, 
that  probably  he  would  have  been  much  surprised  had 
any  one  told  him  that  he  was  so  anxious  to  have  Saul 
with  him  at  dinner  because  he  knew  that  from  Mrs. 
Maskery's  deep-seated  respect  for  that  splendid  sailor- 
man  she  would  almost  certainly  be  on  her  best  behav- 
iour, and — poor  little  man  ! — he  sorely  dreaded  another 
outbreak  like  that  of  the  early  morning.  Another  and 
lesser  reason  was  that  Saul  had  really  provided  the 
mainstay  of  the  Sunday  feast,  and  as  he  had  no  home 
of  his  own,  only  his  boarding-house,  Jemmy  felt  sure 

91 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

that  he  would  not  mind  coming  even  to  so  crowded  a 
dinner-table  as  the  Maskerys'  undoubtedly  was. 

So  they  went,  both  of  them  together,  and  were 
greeted  at  the  door  of  Jemmy's  tiny  house  by  an 
odour  of  roasting  beef  and  boiling  cabbage  that,  as 
Saul  said,  would  almost  give  a  dead  man  an  appetite. 
The  passage  was  full  of  young  Maskerys  in  various 
stages  of  growth,  but  all  wildly  excited  at  the  prospect 
of  the  weekly  banquet — seldom  as  plentiful  as  this, 
however.  As  Saul  and  Jemmy  entered  the  darksome 
but  spotlessly  clean  kitchen  wherein  the  family  spent 
most  of  their  lives,  Mrs.  Maskery  raised  her  heated 
face  from  the  joint  she  was  diligently  carving,  and  said  : 

"  Yore  jest  in  time,  young  man,  I  give  ye  my 
word.  Them  as  ain't  in  ter  dinner  by  one  o'clock  don't 
git  none  put  away  for  'em O  Saul,  I  didn't  no- 
tice yer ;  sit  right  down  yer  an'  make  yerself  at  'ome. — 
Now,  then,  Sally,  say  grace,  ducky."  And  there  was 
an  instant  hush,  all  the  family  remaining  quite  still  in 
whatever  position  they  chanced  to  occupy  at  the  mo- 
ment, and  Mrs.  Maskery  herself  standing  with  one 
hand  holding  the  carving-fork  stuck  in  the  joint,  and 
the  other  shading  her  eyes.  "  Thank  God  for  sendin' 
us  all  a  good  dinner,  through  Jesus  Christ  our  Lord, 
Amen,"  murmured  Sally,  a  mite  of  six,  and  immedi- 
ately the  plates  began  to  circulate  rapidly,  each  re- 
ceiving its  due  proportion  of  beef,  potatoes  (plenty  of 
those),  greens,  and  gravy,  which  the  elder  children 
cut  up  so  that  the  younger  could  manipulate  their  por- 
tions with  spoons.  The  plates  were  odd  ones ;  the 
knives  and  forks  were  of  all  shapes,  sizes,  and  dates ; 
there  was  no  cruet  or  glasses,  only  mugs  to  drink 
water  out  of ;  but,  in  spite  of  all  these  drawbacks,  it  was 
a  good  meal,  heartily  enjoyed,  and  served  with  as  much 

92 


The  First  Sunday  in  the  New  Hall 

care  and  neatness  as  was  possible  under  the  circum- 
stances. If  only  some  of  our  well-fed  clubmen  could 
appreciate  any  of  their  costly  meals  half  as  much  as 
the  Maskery  family  and  their  guest  did  theirs  that  day, 
I  am  sure  they  would  never  begrudge  a  doubling  of  the 
fairly  high  prices  charged  them.  But  enjoyment  is  not 
to  be  bought. 

A  temporary  diversion  of  a  skirmishing  kind  took 
place  while  the  pudding,  a  somewhat  forbidding-look- 
ing ball  of  dough  studded  sparsely  with  raisins,  suc- 
ceeded the  meat  and  vegetables,  for  nearly  all  hands 
were  pressed  into  the  service  of  clearing  away,  wash- 
ing up  such  plates  as  were  required  for  the  second 
course,  and  settling  down  into  their  places  again.  But 
presently  that  pleasant  lassitude  that  succeeds  a  good 
meal  supervened,  while  Jemmy  mentally  calculated 
how  much  longer  time  remained  to  him  before  it 
would  be  necessary  to  set  out  for  the  Hall  to  make 
ready  for  the  embryo  Sunday-school.  Then  up  spake 
Mrs.  Maskery :  "  You  two  men  better  git  inter  th' 
front  parlour  w'ile  we  clear  the  things  orf  th'  table; 
yore  only  in  th'  way  'ere,  's  men  gen'lly  are  'bout  a 
'owse."  But  if  her  words  were  rough,  her  manner 
was  genial,  bringing  quick  response  from  Jemmy, 
whose  sunny  nature  was  always  on  the  alert  to  respond 
to  a  loving  word  or  look  from  any  one. 

So  he  and  Saul  removed  themselves  into  the  best 
room,  and  there,  to  the  unmusical  accompaniment  of 
dish-clattering  and  incessant  shrill  orders  to  the  juve- 
nile assistants  from  Mrs.  Maskery,  they  sat  in  medita- 
tive enjoyment,  neither  speaking  a  word,  until  Jemmy 
suddenly  sprang  energetically  to  his  feet,  hearing  the 
chiming  of  the  half  hour,  and  in  five  minutes  they 
were  both  making  rapid  way  towards  the  Hall. 

93 


CHAPTER  XI 

THE   FIRST   SUNDAY    IN    THE   NEW   HALL.      AFTERNOON 
AND    EVENING 

COMMENCING  the  last  chapter  with  the  full  inten- 
tion of  living  up  to  its  title,  and  comprising  within  its 
limits  all  the  doings  of  this  memorable  first  Sunday,  I 
soon  found  that  unless  I  made  up  my  mind  to  prolong 
it  to  a  most  inordinate  length,  my  idea  was  impracti- 
cable. For  reminiscences  of  the  period  about  which  I 
am  writing  are  revived  so  rapidly  by  one  another  that 
embarrassment  of  riches  soon  sets  in,  and  the  difficulty 
of  selection  becomes  great. 

However,  I  am  grateful  to  know  that  hitherto  no 
one  has  hinted  at  the  possibility  of  my  using  padding. 
,  The  complaint  has  always  been  that  I  have  compressed 
too  much,  and  so  I  hope  it  will  continue  to  be.  There- 
fore let  us  at  once  repair  to  the  "  Hall  "  with  those 
two  earnest  apostles — Saul  and  Jemmy — whose  minds 
were  full  of  the  possibilities  of  extended  service  opened 
up,  of  fresh  opportunities  of  well-doing.  But  they 
were  hardly  prepared  to  find  their  most  sanguine  ex- 
pectations overtopped.  To  begin  a  Sunday-school 
with  about  a  dozen  youngsters,  and  gradually,  by  care- 
ful working,  to  increase  the  number  until  the  Hall 
should  be  full,  had  been  their  idea.  And  lo !  when  they 
arrived,  there  were  over  thirty  children  clustered  round 
the  door  waiting  not  too  patiently  for  it  to  be  opened, 

94 


The  First  Sunday  in  the  New  Hall 

although  it  wanted  full  ten  minutes  of  the  appointed 
time — three  o'clock.  Delighted  almost  beyond  bear- 
ing, Jemmy  burst  in  among  them,  unlocked  the  door, 
and  in  five  minutes,  by  the  children's  willing  aid,  he 
had  got  the  table  cleared  away,  the  forms  set  in  order, 
hymn-books  given  out,  and  the  portable  harmonium 
placed  in  a  prominent  position.  Punctually  to  the 
moment  arrived  the  organist,  that  willing  worker 
whose  peculiar  loyalty  to  her  own  people  did  not 
permit  her  to  worship  with  the  Wren  Lane  folk, 
while  leaving  her  free  to  assist  them  in  ways  like  the 
present. 

Being  the  first  occasion  of  the  meeting  of  the 
school,  the  accommodation  was  very  incomplete,  but 
this,  so  far  from  causing  the  children  any.  annoyance, 
only  heightened  their  enjoyment  of  the  gipsy-like  char- 
acter of  the  proceedings.  A  chapter  from  Jemmy,  a 
short  prayer  from  Brother  Salmon,  and  a  couple  of 
hymns  with  rousing  choruses,  made  a  spirited  opening 
to  the  proceedings,  and  then,  stepping  forward  to  the 
verge  of  the  little  platform,  Jemmy  said :  "  Deer  chil- 
dun,  I  don't  know  how  ter  tell  ye  'ow  glad  I  am  ter 
see  so  many  of  yer  a-comin'  'ere  this  fust  Sunday  we've 
'ad  the  'all.  It's  like  th'  deer  Farther  'imself  a-tellin' 
me  'at  th'  place  wos  badly  wanted.  An',  please  Gord, 
\ve'll  'ave  some  more  forms  by  next  Sunday.  None  of 
yer  sharn't  'ave  t'  set  on  the  flore  (though  I  believe 
ye  likes  it  better'n  a  good  seat).  No,  we'll  'ave  every- 
think  rigged  up  all  right  for  ye  be  nex'  Sunday.  An' 
nah  our  dear  Brother  Saul  'ere  '11  tork  t'  yer.  'E's 
a-goin'  away  acrost  the  great  oshun,  an'  werry  likely  'e 
won't  be  able  to  meet  wiv  any  feller  Chrischuns  fur 
wusshup  until  Gord  brings  'im  back  agen  safely  t'  hus. 
'N'  so  I  wornt  ye  t'  lissen  t'  'im  wiv  all  yore  'earts,  an' 

95 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

remember  wot  'e  sez  t'  ye. — Brother  Saul,  will  ye 
speak,  nah  ?  " 

Saul  in  reply  made  one  step  from  his  lowly  seat 
on  the  floor  to  the  platform,  lifting  with  him  the  fair- 
haired  little  son  (four  years  old)  of  Jemmy  Maskery. 
For  the  child  had  gone  to  sleep,  and  Saul  would  not 
relinquish  him  to  his  father.  Thus  he  stood  before  his 
expectant  audience,  his  face  shining  with  love  and 
sympathy  for  the  youthful  pilgrims  confronting  him. 
When  he  spoke  it  was  in  a  faltering  voice,  for  his  feel- 
ings almost  overcame  his  ability  to  put  his  thoughts 
into  words  such  as  the  children  would  understand.  At 
last  he  began :  "  Dear  little  boys  an'  gals,  as  your 
superintendent  has  said,  I'm  a-goin'  away  from  ye  fur  a 
very  long  time,  perhaps  for  always.  An'  I  don't  feel 
as  if  I  could  go  'thout  sayin'  a  few  words  t'  ye  fust. 
For  the  chance  of  speakin'  t'  ye  I  thank  your  super- 
intendent with  all  my  heart.  An'  now,  what  Shall  I 
say  ?  Shall  I  tell  you  to  be  good  children,  to  read  your 
Bibles,  an'  to  come  to  Sunday-school  reg'lar?  Any  one 
can  tell  you  to  be  an'  do  that,  an'  you'll  feel  that  they're 
only  a-tellin'  ye  somethin'  y'  know  all  about  as  well  as 
they  do,  an'  that,  try  as  hard  as  ye  may,  ye  can't  do 
what  they  tell  ye.  More'n  that,  y'  don'  believe,  if  ye 
think  at  all  about  the  matter,  that  they  can  do  them- 
selves what  they  asks  you  t'  do.  But  I  want  t'  say  this 
t'  ye,  that  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  the  lover  of  little 
people  like  you,  wants,  oh,  so  much,  to  make  you  able 
to  do  right,  to  make  you  able  not  to  do  wrong.  Only 
he  can  do  this  for  you.  All  kinds  of  people  have  tried 
to  do  right  without  him,  but  they  can't,  because  we're 
all  born  with  our  hearts  full  of  wishes  to  do  wrong, 
and  hate  for  what  is  right.  And  as  soon  as  ever  we're 
old  enough  to  do  what  we  want  we  begin  to  do  wrong 

96 


The  First  Sunday  in  the  New  Hall 

if  we're  allowed  to,  and  we  never  do  anything  right 
unless  we're  made  to.  But  if  we  only  do  right  because 
we're  made  to,  we're  not  a  bit  better  than  those  poor 
children  who  do  wrong  because  nobody  makes  'em  do 
right.  Doing  wrong,  whether  we're  beat  for  it  or  not, 
makes  us  unhappy ;  but  we  can't  help  ourselves,  and  we 
go  on  getting  unhappier  because  we  do  wrong,  more 
and  more,  until  we  feel  as  if  there  was  no  hope  that 
we  should  ever  be  anything  but  bad. 

"  All  over  the  world  people  have  tried  for  thousands 
of  years  to  do  all  kinds  of  things  to  please  the  gods 
they  thought  ruled  over  'em,  but  usually  only  because 
they  were  'fraid  of  being  punished  for  their  wrong- 
doing, not  because  they  wanted  to  be  put  right  and 
made  better.  And  even  now,  when  we  think  we're  so 
\vise,  we  often  see  men  who  have  made  lots  of  money 
by  all  kinds  of  wickedness,  \vhen  they  come  near  their 
time  to  die,  they'll  spend  all  they've  got  on  building 
churches,  or  something  like  that,  because  they're  afraid 
they'll  be  punished  after  death.  But  they  forget  that 
God  knows  so  well  what  they've  been  doing  all  their 
lives,  and  that  they  never  did  a  bit  of  good  with  their 
money  until  they  found  that  all  the  pleasure  of  life  was 
gone.  And  so  we  may  be  sure  that  all  the  good  they 
try  to  do  with  that  wickedly  got  money,  when  it  is  of 
no  more  use  to  them,  will  not  be  of  any  benefit  to 
themselves.  Why,  it's  just  like  the  robbers  in  some 
countries  I  know  of  who  always  take  some  of  the 
money  they  have  stolen  from  poor  travellers  and  give 
it  to  their  priests  so  that  they  may  say  some  prayers  for 
them  to  God,  not  only  to  get  them  off  proper  punish- 
ment for  doing  wrong,  but,  what  is  a  much  more  silly 
idea,  that  they  may  be  soon  able  to  steal  plenty  more. 

'  Now,  dear  little  people,  God's  way  is  so  simple 

97 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

that  you  will  be  able  to  understand  it;  more,  he  has 
made  it  so  plain  that  you  can  all,  if  you  will,  walk  in 
it  and  be  happy.  First,  he  sent  his  son  to  bear  the  pun- 
ishment for  the  sins  of  everybody ;  then  he  offers  to  all 
who  believe  in  his  Son  Jesus  the  power  to  do  right  and 
not  to  do  wrong.  He  does  this  by  putting  his  Spirit 
into  our  hearts,  the  Spirit  that  hates  wickedness  and 
loves  good,  so  that  we  poor  helpless  people  shall  find 
it  easy  to  do  right  and  hard  to  do  wrong.  This  makes 
us  happy ;  it  makes  us  useful,  and  it  makes  dear,  gentle 
Jesus  happy,  too.  Oh,  children,  never  forget  that  God 
loves  you;  that  he  wants  to  see  you  good  and  happy; 
that  he  is  able  to  do  all  for  you  that  you  want ;  that  he's 
a  Friend  that's  always  near — so  near  that  if  you  only 
believe  in  his  love  you  will  never  be  lonely  or  for- 
saken any  more. 

"  What  I  am  telling  you  I  am  telling  myself.  For 
I,  like  you,  forget  so  quickly ;  and  presently,  when  I'm 
out  on  the  sea,  and  perhaps  there  may  not  be  another 
man  on  board  my  big  ship  that  loves  God,  if  I  don't 
remember  his  love  and  his  promises  I  shall  feel  very 
lonely.  But  I  shan't  forget  this  afternoon  and  all  your 
dear  faces  listening  to  the  little  I've  been  able  to  tell 
you  about  the  dear  Master.  I  shall  think  of  you 
through  the  long  night  watches  when  all  is  quiet,  and 
the  wide  sea  all  around  looks  like  the  sky  above.  And 
I  hope  that  you  will  all  pray  for  me  that  I  may  live  a 
faithful  life,  doing  what  God  wants  me  to  do,  and  that 
if  it  may  be  I  shall  be  permitted  to  come  back  and  see 
you  all  again  and  find  you  still  following  in  the  foot- 
steps of  your  dear  Friend  and  Master,  Jesus  Christ. 
God  bless  you  all  for  his  sake.  Amen." 

Saul  retreated  with  his  sleeping  burden  to  the  floor 
again,  and  Jemmy  immediately  gave  out  the  hymn, 

98 


The  First  Sunday  in  the  New  Hall 

There's  a  Friend  for  Little  Children.  It  was  lustily 
sung,  of  course,  and  then  with  the  benediction,  the 
little  ones  were  dismissed  into  the  sunshine.  With  a 
good  deal  of  happy  noise  they  dispersed,  to  all  appear- 
ance utterly  forgetting  the  solemn  talk  of  Saul.  But 
those  who  have  studied  children  know  how  wonderfully 
impressions  at  that  early  age  are  often  retained,  and 
when  those  impressions  are  good  who  shall  assess  the 
value  of  the  fruit  borne  of  them  in  after  years.  True, 
it  was  a  very  unorthodox  fashion  of  Sunday-school 
keeping ;  but  for  one  thing  the  staff  of  teachers  was 
not  yet  organized,  and  for  another  Jemmy  was  wise 
enough  to  know  that  after  a  certain  amount  of  teach- 
ing has  been  absorbed,  the  rest  of  the  time  is  often 
wasted  in  repressing  the  children's  naturally  volatile 
spirits.  Nothing  is  being  taught  then. 

So,  carefully  locking  up  the  "  Hall,"  Saul,  Jemmy, 
and  his  little  tribe  went  home  to  tea.  Their  appetites 
were  good,  their  minds  at  ease,  and  before  their  united 
exertions  three  half-quartern  loaves,  half  a  pound  of 
butter,  and  six  pennyworth  of  "  creases  "  entirely  dis- 
appeared. A  healthy  bread-and-butter  appetite  is  such 
a  good  thing  to  have,  it  is  so  pleasant  to  see  youngsters 
polishing  off  slice  after  slice  of  the  plain,  profitable 
food,  that  I  make  no  apology  for  alluding  to  that  im- 
promptu tea-party.  True,  the  tea  was  of  the  weakest. 
Mrs.  Maskery  doled  out  milk  and  sugar  most  spar- 
ingly, but  there  was  plenty  of  the  somewhat  mawkish 
decoction  to  assuage  thirst,  and  what  more  did  any 
one  there  want  ?  Nothing.  By  the  time  the  meal  was 
over,  so  fast  had  the  minutes  flown  by,  it  was  necessary 
for  Jemmy  and  Saul  to  prepare  for  the  grand  event  of 
the  day,  the  open-air  meeting  on  the  "  Waste." 

Now,  during,  the  week,  the  news  of  the  establish- 

99 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

ment  of  the  Wren  Lane  Mission  Hall  had  been  widely 
discussed  in  the  immediate  neighbourhood.  A  large 
number  of  those  who  lived  and  worked  around  Lupin 
Street,  and  belonged  to  no  place  of  worship  whatever, 
had  long  felt  a  sort  of  proprietary  interest  in  the  meet- 
ings of  Jemmy's  little  crowd  on  the  "  Waste  " ;  and 
indeed  it  is  not  at  all  unlikely  that  they  had  some 
dim  and  indefinite  idea  that  the  neighbourhood  was 
in  some  mysterious  way  bettered  by  the  labours  of 
Jemmy  and  his  helpers  in  its  midst.  And  now  that 
a  definite  forward  movement  had  been  made,  and 
that,  too,  upon  such  happily  unorthodox  lines  as 
the  conversion  of  the  cow-shed  into  a  hall,  the 
interest  was  greatly  heightened,  and  in  the  queer- 
est, out-of-the-way  corners  the  work  of  the  Wren 
Lane  Mission  was  discussed  with  much  eagerness. 
Then,  too,  the  weather  of  this  particular  Sunday  was 
perfect.  Even  the  mean  houses  took  on  a  tender 
glow  from  the  declining  rays  of  the  afternoon  sun. 
The  sky  was  of  a  sweet  gray  blue  undefiled  by  the 
clouds  of  smoke  so  heavily  ascending  on  week  days. 
And  the  glorious  old  river  so  close  at  hand  lay  bask- 
ing, gilded  and  tinted  by  the  slanting  rays,  while 
every  ugly  corner  as  well  as  every  beautiful  shape  of 
vessel  lying  quietly  moored  was  touched  and  trans- 
figured. 

Promptly  at  six  the  whole  band  was  gathered  at 
the  Hall,  finding  to  their  amazement  and  gratification 
quite  a  crowd  of  curious  ones  waiting  to  accompany 
them  to  the  field.  Less  than  ten  minutes  sufficed  for 
the  preliminaries,  the  brief,  almost  ejaculatory  prayers 
sent  up  for  the  souls  of  the  hearers,  for  wisdom  and 
power  to  the  speakers,  and  for  a  good  upheaval  all 
round.  Then  the  warriors  sallied  forth  with  bright 

100 


The  First  Sunday  in  the  New  Hall 

faces,  all  except  Jimson,  the  stevedore.  Probably  his 
liver  was  out  of  order,  or  something  of  that  kind,  for 
had  anyone  listened  closely  by  his  side  they  would  have 
heard  mutterings  and  grumblings  something  after  this 
style :  "  Ho,  yers,  'tsall  very  well,  but  some  on  us  's 
gitting  stuck  up,  Hi  think.  Hi  hain't  ben  harsked  t' 
speak  ner  pray  ner  do  anyfing,  in  fac'.  Hi  knows  the 
time  when  it  was  Bruvver  Joe  here,  an'  Bruvver  Joe 
there,  and  Hi  was  alwus  busy  abaht  somefing  er  an- 
other. An'  nar  Joe  Jimson's  only  wanted  when  th'  col- 
lections a-goin'  on.  Sharn't  stan'  much  more  on  it,  Hi 
know."  Poor  fellow,  he  was  yielding  to  one  of  the 
commonest  forms  of  temptation  used  by  the  common 
enemy  in  not  merely  these  gatherings,  but  in  large  and 
influential  churches.  It  is  a  disease  of  all  the  more 
dangerous  character  because  it  is  a  virtue  becoming  a 
vice.  The  surest  sign  of  a  living  church — that  is,  justify- 
ing its  existence — is  that  its  members  are  all  eager  for 
service,  all  unwilling  to  sit  idly  by  and  let  officials  do  all 
the  work  of  the  church  in  a  perfunctory,  official  way ; 
and  yet  how  often  it  is  seen  that  energetic  brothers 
and  sisters  are  extremely  prone  to  take  a  fit  of  the 
sulks  if  any  portion  of  the  work  they  have  been  doing 
(perhaps  very  poorly,  owing  to  personal  limitations)  is 
delegated  to  another,  very  likely  a  newcomer!  Then 
they  need  special  grace  to  overcome  the  temptation  to 
make  things  desperately  unpleasant  for  their  friends 
and  themselves.  Jimson  had  been  somewhat  shelved 
of  late  because  of  the  fiery  zeal  of  Saul,  and  his  master- 
ful mind  (he  was  a  foreman  stevedore)  was  hard  put  to 
it  to  bear  what  he  considered  to  be  unjust  neglect.  So 
he  glowered  and  fumed,  making  himself  unhappy  after 
our  foolish  manner.  Instead  of  putting  the  best  con- 
struction upon  the  actions  of  others  whereby  we  ap- 

IOI 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

pear  to  be  slighted  or  aggrieved,  we  hug  our  griev- 
ances, real  or  fancied,  to  our  hearts  until  we  have 
reared  them  to  an  abnormal  growth,  and  a  matter  that 
was  really  not  worth  more  than  a  passing  thought  be- 
comes an  offence  not  to  be  pardoned. 

Fortunately  for  the  work,  this  evening,  poor  Jim- 
son's  mood  passed  unnoticed.  The  Band  arrived  at 
their  pitch,  a  ring  was  formed,  and  a  hymn  given  out — 
Work,  for  the  Night  is  Coming.  Before  it  was  started 
the  audience  numbered  several  hundreds,  all  working- 
men  and  women,  indefinitely  eager  for  something,  they 
knew  not  what.  The  care-lined  faces  looked  with  pa- 
thetic earnestness  at  the  speaker  when,  the  hymn  over, 
Jemmy  came  forward  to  tell  for  the  five  hundredth 
time  the  stories  of  his  father's  conversion  and  his  own. 
Many  of  them  had  heard  it  often  before,  but  it  never 
seemed  to  pall,  and  the  unuttered  sympathy  was  so 
manifest  that  Jemmy  outdid  himself.  His  face  was 
transfigured,  his  voice  deepened,  until,  amid  a  hush  that 
was  intensely  solemn,  a  man  who  had  long  been  the 
terror  of  the  alley  in  which  he  lived,  and  the  scourge  of 
his  wife  and  family,  came  forward  as  if  drawn  by  some 
unseen  but  irresistible  force  and,  gently  moving  aside 
those  who  obstructed  his  progress,  reached  the  ring. 
Sinking  upon  his  knees,  he  said  softly,  "  God,  be  mer- 
ciful to  me  a  sinner."  There  was  a  dramatic  pause 
while  Jemmy,  placing  his  grimy  hand  upon  the  new- 
comer's head,  cried :  "  Yuss,  brother,  'e  will.  You've 
claimed  'im,  an'  you'll  fine  'im,  as  I  'ave,  the  tenderest, 
most  fergivin'  Friend  you  ever  'card  on." 

As  if  hardly  heeding,  the  man  rose  to  his  feet  and 
faced  the  crowd,  now  excited  tremendously  by  what 
was  occurring.  "  Neighbers,"  he  said,  "  ye  all  know 
'at  Bill  Harrop  'as  been  a  mighty  bad  character  for 

1 02 


The  First  Sunday  in  the  New  Hall 

a  good  many  years.  Most  of  ye  know  'at  my  pore  wife 
an'  kids  'as  often  'ad  t'  go  close  t'  th'  edge  o'  starvation 
w'ile  I  ben  a-boozin'  away  like  a  'ouse  afire.  An' 
everybody  fought  I  didn't  care.  Well,  I  didn't,  'cause 
I  couldn't.  I'd  a  liked  to,  and  I  did  try  to — oh,  yuss,  I 
did,  'undreds  o'  times.  But  at  last  I  see  my  tryin' 
was  all  no  use,  and  I  jes'  let  meself  go  'eadlong  t'  'ell, 
as  all  on  ye  know.  An'  nah  it's  gotter  thet  as  I  see 
'em  a-dyin'  afore  me  werry  eyes,  an'  I — an'  I  go  on 
boozin'  th'  larst  'apenny  as  'd  keep  'em  alive.  All  th' 
time  I  knowed  there  wuz  a  Gord,  on'y  I  tried  'ard  t' 
fergit  it,  and  I  couldn'  'elp  knowin'  there  was  one  devil 
any'ow  's  long  as  I  knowed  I  was  erbout  meself.  Nah, 
altho'  I  b'lieve  I'm  the  wust  man  I  ever  come  acrost, 
I  just  b'lieve  too  that  Gord  can  make  even  me  wuth 
somethin'.  I  know  I  am  wus'n  ever  old  Pug  Maskery 
was,  but  I  do  b'lieve  I  ain't  too  bad  to  be  saved.  I 
b'lieve  Gord  'as  saved  me." 

A  long,  loud  cry  of  "  Glory  to  God  "  arose  from 
the  little  gathering,  and  Mrs.  Salmon,  her  worn  fea- 
tures all  aglow  with  heavenly  light,  stole  softly  to  the 
side  of  the  penitent  and  led  him  to  the  rear  of  the  meet- 
ing. For  she,  with  a  wisdom  that  is  often  lacking  to 
earnest  revivalists,  dreaded  intensely  the  noisy*  out- 
burst of  religious  excitement,  a  state  of  mind  conta- 
gious in  the  extreme  among  large  masses  of  people, 
and  often  as  utterly  destitute  of  the  Spirit  of  God  as 
is  a  gathering  of  howling  dervishes. 

Saul  then  took  up  his  place  as  speaker  at  the  beck 
of  Jemmy,  who,  with  the  keen  perception  born  of  long 
practice  in  these  matters,  saw  perfectly  how  Saul's  per- 
fect unconventionally,  deep  Christian  sympathy  of 
look  and  tone,  and  abundantly  manifested  love  of  his 
follow-men  would  appeal  to  an  audience  already  pre- 
8  103 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

pared  for  such  a  message  by  the  solemn  proof  of  the 
Gospel's  power  which  they  had  just  witnessed. 

"  Dear  friends,"  began  the  sailor,  "  Jesus  Christ  is 
longin'  to  bless  ye.  Just  as  a  mother's  heart  yearns 
over  her  baby,  only  infinitely  more  tender,  infinitely 
stronger  than  that  poor  human  effort,  so  does  the 
loving  heart  of  God's  Son  yearn  over  you  now.  He, 
seein'  into  all  hearts  here,  knows  what  we  can  only 
dimly  feel :  that  his  Spirit  is  workin'  mightily  with  ye 
to  bring  ye  to  him.  Ignorance,  shyness,  fear,  shame — 
these  are  some  of  the  things  that's  holdin'  ye  back. 
But  if  ye  have  one  thing,  the  desire  to  come  to  him, 
he  can  and  will  remove  all  these  paltry  hindrances. 
If  ye  are  ignorant,  he  is  all-wise ;  if  ye  are  shy,  he  was 
lifted  up  on  the  cruel  cross  before  the  eyes  of  a  mocking 
world  for  your  sakes ;  if  you  are  afraid  of  ridicule,  of 
persecution,  of  failure,  he  has  met  and  conquered  the 
most  awful  shapes  that  fear  can  put  on  for  you ;  if  you 
are  ashamed  of  anything,  no  matter  what,  just  look  up 
in  his  dear  face,  and  the  sight  will  bring  all  your  shame 
down  to  one  point — that  you  have  so  long  held  out 
against  his  wonderful  love.  My  dear  Master  and 
loving  Lord,  these  poor  souls  are  so  hungry  for  you ; 
like  l&st  children  wandering  in  the  night  they  stretch 
out  blind  hands  and  feel  after  the  Consoler ;  oh,  satisfy 
their  unknowing  needs,  dear  Friend  of  all  mankind. 
Brothers  and  sisters,  here's  a  salve  for  every  sore,  a 
remedy  for  all  evils  of  heart  an'  soul  an'  body.  The 
price  of  it  to  him  who  offers  it  by  my  voice  at  this 
moment  was  so  great  that  the  glorious  company  of 
heaven  veiled  their  faces  as  it  was  paid.  The  heavenly 
Father  (who  is  love)  must  needs  hide  his  glorious  face 
from  Jesus  as  he  suffered,  because  your  sin  was  laid 
upon  him,  and  who  can  say  what  that  meant  to  Jesus. 

104 


The  First  Sunday  in  the  New  Hall 

All  this  agony  of  the  soul  upon  agony  of  body,  such  as 
no  merely  imperfect  man  can  feel,  to  purchase  redemp- 
tion for  you,  and  to  set  you  once  more  in  the  place  it 
was  God's  intention  that  you  should  occupy.  And  this 
heavenly  Niagara  of  blessing  is  yours  for  the  taking. 
He'll  provide  all  things.  Cleansing,  wedding  gar- 
ments, feasts,  music,  education,  protection  from  evil 
outside  and  inside.  There's  an  old,  old  fable  about  a 
man  who,  havin'  pleased  his  god  by  showin'  him  hos- 
pitality when  he  came  to  him  in  the  shape  of  a  way- 
farer, was  blessed  by  havin'  the  pitcher  out  of  which  he 
poured  the  milk  for  the  thirsty  traveller  always  full. 
That's  a  feeble  picture  of  the  fountain  of  blessing  Jesus 
has  for  you.  It  isn't  only  that  there  is  a  well  to  which 
you  may  go  whenever  you  like  and  draw  as  much  as 
you  like,  but  within  your  very  soul  a  fresh  spring  shall 
spout  up,  an  inexhaustible  supply  not  only  for  you 
but  for  all  around. 

"  You  stand  ready  for  this  blessing,  but  you're  in 
much  danger  of  losin'  it.  For  the  tempter  is  whisperin', 
Don't  be  rash,  take  your  time,  reflect,  to  some ;  while 
to  others  he  imparts  a  certain  stolid  attitude  of  dull 
wonder,  against  which  the  simple  message  of '  Come  to 
Jesus  '  beats  vainly.  .  .  ." 

Suddenly  the  speaker's  voice  ceased,  his  bronzed 
face  took  on  a  deeper  flush,  big  tears  burst  from  his 
eyes  and  rolled  rapidly  down  his  cheeks  as  with  dumb 
appeal  he  spread  out  his  arms  to  the  people.  He  saw 
how  inadequate  his  words  were  to  express  what  was  so 
apparent  to  his  mental  vision ;  he  felt  something  of  the 
Master's  burden  of  the  woes  of  others ;  he  heard  re- 
verberating through  the  air  the  cries  of  the  overbur- 
dened and  hopeless  victims  of  the  world's  harsh  ways. 
And  these  things  overcame  him,  took  from  him  all 

105 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

power  of  speech,  but  left  him  what  under  the  circum- 
stances was  far  more  effectual,  the  magnetic  attraction 
of  deepest  sympathy  with  his  hearers,  plainly  to  be 
seen  and  felt  by  them  all. 

The  results  were  amazing.  Men  and  women  in 
dozens,  their  last  defences  of  insular  reserve  broken 
down,  pressed  forward  claiming  the  gift  of  God.  The 
patch  of  shabby,  hard-trampled  common  became  a 
sanctuary  where  rows  of  returning  prodigals  were  em- 
braced by  the  long-suffering  Father,  and  the  whole 
atmosphere  was  surcharged  with  happiness. 

A  praise  meeting  was  immediately  held,  in  which 
many  joined  who  had  never  praised  God  before,  and 
afterward,  breaking  up  into  little  groups,  men  and 
women  exchanged  confidences  and  experiences  with  a 
freedom  and  overflowing  sympathy  entirely  new  and 
strange,  while  bursts  of  song  arose  from  hearts  whose 
music  could  not  be  restrained.  Into  those  gray  lives 
the  rainbow  hues  of  the  breaking  of  God's  day  had 
penetrated,  and  like  song-birds  at  sunrise  they  must 
needs  lift  up  their  voices  and  welcome  the  light. 

Gladly  would  Jemmy  have  welcomed  the  concourse 
into  the  "  Hall,"  but  it  was  impossible ;  there  was  not 
room  for  the  half  of  them.  But,  singing  as  they  went, 
the  happy  crowd  accompanied  the  instruments  of  their 
release  to  the  door  of  the  little  place,  and  there,  with 
many  handshakings  and  "  God  bless  you's,"  they 
parted  for  the  night,  each  to  go  his  or  her  own  way 
and  meditate  upon  the  wonderful  work  wrought  by  the 
love  of  God. 


106 


CHAPTER  XII 

SAUL'S    DEPARTURE 

THERE  was  a  touching  little  gathering  in  Jemmy's 
parlour  the  next  evening.  All  day  long  the  hearts  of  all 
concerned  in  the  work  of  the  little  mission  had  been 
like  a  choir  of  tiny  angels  in  spite  of  the  numberless 
fretting  annoyances  of  their  daily  life.  Even  Joe  Jim- 
son,  the  captious  stevedore,  found  himself  less  disposed 
to  feel  aggrieved  at  the  small  active  part  he  had  taken 
in  the  recent  open-air  work,  and  occasionally  moved  to 
lift  up  his  voice  in  strident  song,  an  inclination  which 
he  manfully  repressed  for  fear  of  the  effect  which  it 
might  have  upon  his  irreverent  gang  of  cargo-handlers. 
Captain  Stevens,  of  the  tug,  started  off  that  morning 
at  4  A.  M.  on  a  short  cruise  down  the  river  with  a 
face  that  fairly  glowed  with  delight,  while  from  his 
bearded  lips  there  issued  a  strange  series  of  sounds  not 
unlike  the  buzzing  of  a  hive  of  bees  under  the  hot  sun- 
shine of  a  July  noon. 

But  when  the  little  parlour  was  full  of  all  those  who 
could  come  to  bid  Saul  Andrews  farewell  there  was  a 
notable  fall  in  the  spiritual  barometer.  They  all,  not 
even  excluding  Jimson,  loved  him  well,  and  felt  the 
parting  with  him  sorely.  He  was,  they  felt,  one  of  their 
own  prizes,  won  from  out  of  the  gape  of  the  dragon  by 
their  own  humble  instrumentality.  And  since  his  con- 
version he  had  walked  so  humbly  and  consistently 

107 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

with  his  God,  his  help  and  teaching  had  been  so  valu- 
able to  them,  and  his  influences  so  entirely  good,  that 
all  felt  on  his  departure  a  sense  of  bereavement  that 
was  very  hard  to  bear.  Jemmy,  of  course,  was  hardest 
hit,  for  he  and  Saul  had  grappled  each  other  to  their 
hearts  with  hooks  of  steel,  a  mutual  bond  none  the 
less  enduring  because  Saul  was  fully  alive  to  Jemmy's 
many  defects. 

The  pair  sat  side  by  side,  hand  in  hand,  at  Jemmy's 
table,  while  Saul  haltingly  uttered  a  few  words  of  ca- 
ressing farewell.  He  was  due  on  board  that  night  in 
order  to  be  ready  for  the  early  morning  tide,  when  at 
daybreak  the  great  portals  of  the  East  India  Dock 
would  open  and  let  out  the  huge  Asteroid  for  the  com- 
mencement of  her  long  voyage  round  the  world.  Sol- 
emnly he  exhorted  his  brethren  to  fight  against  the 
devil  of  envy,  the  devil  of  jealousy,  the  temptations  to 
spiritual  pride.  Touchingly  he  besought  them  to  abide 
in  love  one  towards  another,  and  then,  inviting  them  all 
to  kneel  with  him,  he  lifted  up  his  heart  in  tenderest, 
simplest  supplication  that  the  Lord  would  mightily 
bless  each  and  all  of  them  in  all  their  ways.  And  then, 
one  by  one,  they  passed  out  into  the  gloom  of  Lupin 
Street,  each  leaving  with  him  as  they  shook  hands 
some  little  token  of  regard — a  book,  a  pair  of  socks  or 
mittens,  a  muffler,  and  such  like  trifles. 

Hardest  of  all  was  his  parting  with  Jemmy  and 
Mrs.  Maskery.  The  latter,  softened  almost  to  tears, 
took  his  few  quietly  uttered,  warning  words  in  sub- 
missive silence.  "  Jemmy's  got  his  faults,  like  all  of 
us,"  he  said,  "  but  you  know  better'n  any  of  us  how 
close  he  has  got  to  the  mind  of  our  Father.  Don't  for- 
get that,  'specially  when  he  tries  your  temper  very  hard. 
God  bless  you  both  and  make  you  very  helpful  to  each 

1 08 


Saul's  Departure 


other,  bearing  each  other's  burdens  and  looking  for- 
ward to  the  glory  a-follerin'.  I  know  I  ain't  very  clear 
in  my  expressions,  but  I  b'lieve  you  know  what  I 
mean.  Now  I  must  go.  I  won't  ask  ye  to  think  of  me, 
'cause  I'm  sure  y'  always  do,  but  I  do  ask  you  t'  pray 
for  me,  'cause  I've  got  a  long,  heavy  job  ahead,  an'  it 
cheers  me  to  know  'at  there's  dear  ones  at  home  liftin' 
up  their  'earts  t'  God  for  me.  No,"  as  Jemmy  made  to 
get  his  coat  and  hat,  "  no,  you  mustn't  come  with  me. 
What's  th'  use  of  makin'  th'  partin'  any  harder  than  it 
need  be  ?  I'll  say,  '  God  be  with  you  all  evermore, 
Amen,'  here."  And  wringing  their  hands,  Saul 
stepped  out  into  the  night. 

I  should  like,  if  mental  analysis  were  my  forte,  to 
give  a  word-picture  of  Saul's  feelings  as  he  threaded 
the  squalid  maze  of  streets  that  lay  between  him  and 
Rotherhithe  Station  on  the  East  London  Line.  How 
the  foul  language,  flowing  so  glibly  between  the  mem- 
bers of  the  various  groups  of  boys  and  girls  he  passed, 
affected  him.  What  his  mental  attitude  was  towards 
the  future — the  long,  long  voyage  with  all  its  human 
loneliness  that  lay  before  him.  How,  for  he  was  natu- 
rally both  sympathetic  and  imaginative,  he  glanced 
up  at  the  rabbit-hutches  of  houses  he  passed,  and  won- 
dered what  tragedies  of  life,  death,  and  resurrection 
were  being  enacted  within,  but  to  what  good  end. 
Such  subtle  disquisition,  even  in  the  most  skilful  hands, 
is  of  very  little  value,  since  humanity,  whether  in  its 
mental  or  physical  aspects,  is  so  individually  diversified, 
and  the  experience  of  one  is  never  the  duplicate  of  the 
experience  of  another;  neither  can  it  be  taken  as  a 
guide  without  danger.  Perhaps  the  best  way  in  which 
to  describe  what  was  in  the  mind  of  Saul  would  be  to 
say  that  all  these  external  things  were  to  him  as  the 

109 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

chips  and  straws  which  float  and  whirl  upon  the  sur- 
face of  the  swiftly  rushing  river.  The  voyager  sees 
them,  apprehends  them,  more  clearly  than  he  does 
the  deep,  resistless  force  of  the  current  beneath,  but 
although  they  engage  his  superficial  attention,  they  do 
not  affect  his  purpose  or  his  destination. 

Slinking  forms,  both  male  and  female,  waylaid  Saul 
without  hindering  him.  Their  muttered  remarks 
passed  his  ears  without  entering,  and  one  hour  after 
leaving  his  friends  at  Lupin  Street  he  climbed  on  board 
the  Asteroid  and  entered  the  berth  he  was  to  share  for 
the  voyage  with  the  carpenter  and  sail-maker.  A  feel- 
ing of  disgust,  immediately  suppressed,  swept  over 
him  as  he  opened  the  door  and  struck  a  match,  for  the 
atmosphere  within  was  foul  with  the  horrible  smells  of 
drunkenness — his  two  berth-mates  being  stretched, 
fully  clothed,  in  their  respective  bunks,  stertorously 
exhaling  the  fumes  of  their  last  debauch.  And  as  he 
looked  at  them  he  remembered  how  he  had  so  recently 
been,  as  they  were,  tied  and  bound  by  an  awful  chain 
which  he  had  no  power  to  break,  but  which  at  the  touch 
of  the  Loving  One  had  fallen  from  him  as  did  Peter's 
in  the  prison  of  old. 

Very  deftly  and  quickly  he  arranged  his  sleeping- 
place  and  prepared  his  working  rig  for  the  morning; 
then,  lighting  his  own  little  candle-lamp  that  he  had 
rigged  up  that  day,  he  turned  in,  and  with  a  sigh  of 
contentment,  as  the  sweetness  of  the  rest  to  his  body 
stole  over  him,  he  opened  his  well-worn  Bible  at  the 
best-loved  chapter,  I  Peter,  i.  Its  clear-cut  statement 
of  fact,  its  glimpses  into  the  all-wise,  all-loving  pur- 
poses of  the  Father  were  to  his  soul  like  the  tender 
nursing  motions  of  a  mother  to  her  babe,  and  a  great 
peace  flooded  his  whole  being.  It  is  in  this  wise  that 

no 


Saul's  Departure 


God  often  reveals  himself  to  the  unlearned  but  simply 
trusting  children  of  his  love.  With  every  mental  hin- 
drance, as  well  as  physical  disability  arrayed  against 
them,  they  are  yet  endowed  with  a  faculty  of  enjoy- 
ment in  his  presence  ;  they  hear  the  accents  of  his  voice 
far,  far  more  clearly  than  those  who  have  every  ex- 
ternal facility  granted  unto  them.  It  is  the  extension 
into  the  spiritual  world  of  the  great  law  of  compensa- 
tion. 

His  eyes  grew  tired,  and  sleep  came  stealing  gently 
over  him,  so  he  laid  his  book  upon  the  shelf  over  his 
head,  and  in  a  few  simple  sentences  claimed  once  more 
his  Father's  blessing  and  protection  for  the  dear  ones 
he  was  leaving,  confidently  asked  for  grace  and  cour- 
age to  fulfil  his  appointed  tasks,  and  offered  up  his  glad 
tribute  of  praise.  Then,  with  the  murmured  "  Thank 
God,  thank  God !  "  exhaling  from  his  bearded  lips  like 
sweet  perfume,  he  sank  into  childlike  sleep,  an  utterly 
happy  man. 

Before  the  pale  and  cheerless  dawn  broke,  with  an 
accompaniment  of  furious  squalls  of  bitter  rain,  Saul 
started  up  from  his  pleasant,  dreamless  sleep  at  the  voice 
of  the  watchman  whose  duty  it  was  to  rouse  the  officers 
at  the  appointed  time  for  getting  under  weigh.  \Yith 
a  cheery  "  All  right !  "  he  sprang  out  of  his  bunk,  lit  his 
pipe,  and  dressed  with  marvellous  celerity,  smoking 
vigorously  the  while.  His  movements,  no  less  than 
the  bright  cheerfulness  of  his  face,  made  him  a  strong 
contrast  to  his  two  most  wretched  berth-mates.  For 
not  only  were  their  recent  excesses  clamouring  for 
renewal,  but  the  sudden  awakening  out  of  that  deep 
slumber  into  which  they  had  fallen  overnight,  with 
their  brains  all  awhirl,  had  set  all  their  nerves  jumping 
so  that  their  fingers  could  hardly  fasten  up  their  cloth- 

III 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

ing.  Their  eyes  were  dim  and  gummy,  their  faces 
drawn  and  twitching,  while  every  few  seconds  their 
leathery  tongues  roamed  fruitlessly  round  their  dried- 
up  mouths,  vainly  seeking  a  little  moisture.  With  their 
energetic  and  cheery  shipmate  they  exchanged  not  a 
word  after  the  sullen  "  G'mornin'  "  with  which  they  had 
replied  to  his  first  salutation,  and  he,  wisely,  did  not 
press  conversation  upon  them,  seeing  that  it  was 
almost  necessary  for  them  to  keep  their  mouths  tight 
shut,  lest  groans  should  escape  and  shame  them.  Sud- 
denly Saul  laid  down  his  pipe,  completed  his  rig  by 
putting  on  his  sou'wester,  and  stepped  out  into  the 
tempestuous  morning.  Making  his  way  aft,  he  found 
Mr.  Carroll,  the  mate,  in  his  berth,  taking  a  cup  of  hot 
coffee  while  waiting  for  his  bo'sun's  arrival. 

It  is  always  rather  an  anxious  time  for  such  a  re- 
sponsible officer  as  the  mate  of  a  ship,  and  especially  a 
big  sailing  ship,  the  period  of  finding  out  what  kind 
of  men  his  subordinates  are.  Especially  is  this  the  case 
with  respect  to  the  bo'sun.  Upon  this  petty  officer, 
whose  work  is  almost  exactly  comparable  with  that  of 
a  foreman  upon  a  building,  depends  very  much  of  the 
mate's  comfort.  The  second  mate  may  be  a  duffer, 
but  his  deficiencies  will  be  dealt  with  by  the  master, 
who  in  case  of  the  second  mate's  utter  uselessness 
must  keep  that  officer's  watch.  But  the  bo'sun,  who 
by  the  unwritten  laws  of  sea  etiquette  takes  his  orders 
from  the  mate  alone,  is  the  man  who,  after  the  master, 
makes  or  mars  the  mate's  happiness.  If  he  knows 
his  work  thoroughly,  is  a  man  of  energy  and  resource, 
gifted  with  the  indefinable  quality  which  alone  enables 
a  man  to  command  his  fellows  without  bullying  or  con- 
stant friction,  he  is  a  pearl  of  great  price,  and  few, 
indeed,  are  the  mates  who  do  not  recognise  this  to  the 

112 


Saul's  Departure 


full.  Therefore,  when  Mr.  Carroll  looked  up  from 
his  table  and  saw  Saul  standing  in  the  doorway,  his 
quick  glance  took  in  at  a  flash  the  alert,  upright  figure, 
the  bright,  pleasant  face,  and  keen  eye,  and  he  breathed 
more  freely. 

"  Mornin',  bo'sun,"  said  he,  "  you're  very  punc- 
tual." 

"  Good-mornin',  sir,"  replied  Saul,  "  hopes  you'll 
alwus  fine  me  so,  sir.  Any  special  orders,  sir?" 

"  No,  not  yet,  bo'sun,"  thoughtfully  returned  the 
mate.  "  Anyhow,  not  till  we  see  what  the  crowd's  like. 
Most  of  'em  drunk,  I  s'pose,  as  usual.  Turn  'em  to  as 
soon  as  you  can,  an'  let's  see  what  they're  like.  An' 
keep  the  decks  as  clear  as  you  can.  If  there  is  one 
thing  more  than  another  that  riles  me,  it's  seein'  the 
decks  all  littered  up  goin'  out  o'  dock.  It's  bad  at 
any  time,  but  then,  I  think,  it's  worst  of  all.  So  do 
what  you  can,  bo'sun,  to  keep  things  clear.  Rainin' 
pretty  hard,  aint  it?" 

"  Yes,  sir,"  answered  Saul  dubiously ;  "  looks  's  if 
there's  a  lot  o'  dirt  about.  But  it's  gettin'  lighter,  that's 
one  comfort.  Well,  sir,  if  you've  no  more  orders  at 
present,  I'll  be  gettin'  'em  started." 

"  Yes,  do,  bo'sun,  and  I'll  be  along  in  about  five 
minutes.  Oh,  have  a  drink  'fore  you  start  ?  " 

"  No,  thank  you,  sir,  I  don't  touch  it,"  said  Saul 
earnestly.  "  I've  had  all  I  want.  I  find  I  can't  take  a 
little  and  done  with  it,  so  I  take  none  an'  keep  on  the 
safe  side.  No  offence,  I  hope,  sir." 

"  Not  likely,"  cheerily  answered  the  mate ;  "  it's 
mighty  good  news  to  me,  I  give  you  my  word.  But 
I  guess  you'll  have  a  pretty  tough  time  with  Chips  and 
Sails.  They've  been  in  the  ship  three  voyages,  and 
while  they're  as  good  men  at  their  trade  as  ever  I  want 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

to  go  fishin'  with,  they  are  about  the  worst  kind  of  soak- 
ers I  ever  came  across.  They  just  can't  take  a  nip  an' 
done  with  it.  Well,  start  the  boys  now,  bo'sun,  please." 
"  Ay,  ay,  sir,"  responded  Saul,  and  disappeared. 
Striding  forward,  he  put  his  head  in  at  the  port  fo'csle 
door,  and  in  his  deepest  tones  of  command  shouted, 
"  Turn  to,  there."  He  then  went  to  the  starboard  door 
and  repeated  his  order,  noting  as  he  did  so  that  four 
or  five  men  were  sitting  under  the  dim  light  shed  by 
the  miserable  lamp,  drinking  their  coffee,  while  the 
rest  of  the  crew  were  either  lying  on  the  deck  in  vari- 
ous limp  and  uncomfortable  attitudes  or  invisible  in  the 
gloom  of  their  bunks.  But  after  the  immemorial  cus- 
tom obtaining  in  British  merchant  ships  he  retreated, 
to  give  them  a  few  minutes'  grace  in  which  to  pull 
themselves  together.  In  an  American  or  a  Canadian 
vessel  there  would  have  been  no  such  latitude.  Upon 
the  word,  those  ordered  must  jump  or  be  jumped  upon 
— assailed  with  boot,  fist,  belaying-pin,  or  handspike. 
And  knowing  this,  men  shipping  on  board  these  ves- 
sels are  disinclined  to  tempt  fortune  by  dilatory  be- 
haviour. Now,  while  Saul  was  awaiting  the  pleasure 
of  the  crew — for  it  amounted  to  that  and  no  less — his 
mind  was  exceedingly  busy.  The  old  enemy  was  as- 
sailing him  with  insidious  suggestions  of  the  difficulty 
awaiting  him  should  the  men  over  whom  he  was  placed 
be,  as  is  so  often  the  case,  sullen,  unruly,  and  lazy. 
Would  he  dare  to  use  force,  and  if  not,  how  would  he 
get  himself  obeyed?  In  either  case,  how  would  his 
reputation  as  a  Christian  stand  ?  It  was  a  stiff  problem, 
and  for  a  moment,  but  only  for  a  moment,  it  staggered 
him.  Then  his  heart  went  up  in  unuttered  request  for 
assistance — for  wisdom  to  do  the  right  thing  at  the  right 
time,  and  while  he  was  yet  asking,  the  assurance  came. 

114 


Saul's  Departure 


Ample  time  having  been  allowed  the  men  to  get 
out,  he  stepped  forward  briskly  with  a  stentorian  shout 
of  "  Now,  then,  all  hands,  out  with  you,  an'  get  ship 
unmoored.  Out  with  you."  Two  or  three  slouching 
forms  lolled  over  the  step  of  the  fo'csle  door  rather 
than  stepped  out,  muttering  hardly  articulate  blas- 
phemy on  this  rude  disturber  of  their  peace  who  was 
actually  daring  to  do  his  duty  in  ordering  them  to  do 
theirs.  Immediately  Saul  strode  towards  them,  saying 
sternly :  "  Get  to  your  work  at  once.  Inside,  say  what 
you  like ;  on  deck,  you're  under  my  command,  and 
while  I'm  able  to  stand  up  I'll  see  you  keep  a  civil 
tongue  an'  do  what  you've  signed  for,  see."  These 
words,  uttered  in  a  firm,  clear,  and  manly  voice, 
brought  all  the  rest  of  the  crowd  on  deck  except  those 
who  were  helplessly  drunk,  and  as  they  came  Saul's 
orders  flew  like  hail.  There  were  no  pauses  for  con- 
sultation on  the  part  of  the  puzzled  crew  or  for  the 
formulating  of  hasty  plans  by  the  bo'sun.  No;  the 
work  went  steadily  forward  without  a  hitch,  and  pres- 
ently, in  the  midst  of  the  driving  rain,  the  howling  wind, 
and  the  shouting  of  orders,  men  found  time  to  murmur 
to  one  another,  "  Say,  this  hyer  bo'sun  of  ours  do 
know  'is  work,  don't  'e  ?  " 

He  certainly  did  know  his  work,  and,  true  to  his 
recent  training,  did  it  with  all  his  might,  neither  spar- 
ing himself  nor  those  under  his  orders.  And  so  it  came 
about  that  with  far  less  trouble  or  confusion,  and  far 
less  expense  to  the  owners  for  outside  help  than  is 
usual,  the  Asteroid  was  conveyed  riverward  until  at 
the  outer  lock  gates  the  big  tug  Cestrian,  with  Skipper 
Stevens  in  command,  backed  up  and  took  her  hawser. 
Easily,  gracefully,  she  turned,  and  then,  like  a  horse 
that  has  been  fretted  by  constant  windings  through  the 

"5 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

tortuous  ways  of  a  town  and  has  at  last  emerged  into 
the  free,  straight  way  of  the  country  road,  the  Asteroid 
sped  seaward  under  the  friendly  stress  of  the  powerful 
auxiliary  ahead. 

As  the  stress  of  duty  slackened  somewhat,  Saul's 
tact  needed  all  its  exercise  to  keep  the  peace.  For,  as 
always,  there  were  some  willing  fellows  among  the  crew 
who,  once  they  were  started,  found  it  not  merely  easy, 
but  pleasant  to  do  what  they  were  told  to  the  best 
of  their  ability,  and  there  were  others  who,  no  matter 
what  the  duties  in  hand  might  be,  would  shirk  them  if 
they  could ;  who  would  always  step  aside  to  let  some 
one  else  do  what  should  have  been  done  by  them. 
And  these  fellows  now,  at  the  first  sign  of  slackening 
strain,  dodged  into  the  fo'csle,  leaving  the  willing  ones 
to  do  whatever  was  to  be  done,  while  they,  the  lean 
kine  of  the  ship,  lurked  in  darksome  corners  hugging 
themselves  that  they  were  escaping  some  of  the  work, 
at  any  rate. 

It  is  hard  to  sit  in  judgment  upon  one's  fellow-men, 
especially  when  one  has  so  often  felt  the  compulsion  of 
the  flesh  oneself;  but  if  ever  there  was  an  excuse  for 
so  doing,  I  think  it  must  be  afforded  to  those  who  have, 
by  the  force  of  circumstances,  been  compelled  to  get 
out  of  unwilling  men  that  which  they  ought  to  give, 
or  to  put  upon  the  shoulders 'of  their  willing  work- 
fellows  a  load  far  beyond  that  which  they  ought  to 
bear.  I  know  of  no  conditions  where  this  problem  pre- 
sents itself  as  it  does  in  the  merchant  service.  For 
on  board  ship  it  will  ever  be  found  that  the  good,  ear- 
nest sailor  will  do  far  more  than  he  ought,  while  the 
loafing,  blaspheming  wastrel  goes  easy.  Quite  natu- 
rally, because  no  officer  likes  to  be  constantly  wrestling 
with  calculated  rascality,  and  will  always,  no  matter 

116 


Saul's  Departure 


how  he  feels,  sooner  or  later,  take  the  line  of  least  re- 
sistance for  his  own  personal  comfort.  The  average 
man  needs  a  certain  amount  of  compulsion,  sometimes 
moral,  mostly  physical ;  he  needs  to  have  some  punish- 
ment obviously  before  him,  or  he  will  not  do  that  which 
he  should.  On  board  British  merchant  ships,  grievous 
as  it  is  to  have  to  say  it,  blackguardism  is  at  a  pre- 
mium, and  if  a  man  will  only  give  his  mind  to  being 
truculent  and  disorderly  he  will  be  sure,  with  the  rarest 
exceptions,  of  having  an  easy  time;  while  his  ship- 
mates, who  have  decent  desires,  and  a  fellow-feeling  for 
those  whom  accident  has  placed  in  authority  over  them, 
will  lead  a  very  hard  life. 

On  shore  these  difficulties  present  themselves,  no 
doubt,  but  in  nothing  like  the  same  degree,  because 
recalcitrant  workmen  can  always  be  dealt  with  in  the 
simplest  way  by  the  dread  of  losing  their  employment. 
And  he  who  does  his  work  in  willing  and  trustworthy 
fashion,  loving  it  for  its  own  sake,  will  surely  find  him- 
self valued,  paid  better,  given  opportunities  of  raising 
himself.  And  he  will  never  suffer  because  any  of  his 
mates  do  not  do  their  work  properly.  On  board  ship, 
however,  such  a  man  will  find  all  his  good  qualities 
exploited  to  his  own  detriment;  he  will  have  every 
inducement  held  out  to  him  to  become  indifferent, 
lazy,  and  blackguardly ;  and  if  he  choose  to  be  the  re- 
verse, he  will  not  only  find  himself  worked  off  his  feet 
by  the  officers,  but  his  life  in  the  fo'csle  will  be  one  of 
the  most  wretched,  humanly  speaking,  that  it  is  pos- 
sible to  conceive. 

All  these  facts  were  perfectly  well  known  to  Saul, 
of  course,  and  ever  since  his  conversion  he  had  been 
promising  himself  that  when,  if  ever,  he  attained  a  po- 
sition of  command,  he  would,  by  God's  help,  use  all 

117 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

his  endeavours  to  prevent  such  a  state  of  things  from 
existing  under  him.  This  he  resolved,  being  fully 
aware  of  what  it  would  mean  to  him,  but  trusting  that 
he  would  be  guided  aright  as  well  as  helped  in  his 
earnest  endeavours  to  do  justice  without  fear  or  favour 
between  man  and  man  under  his  orders.  Behold  him, 
then,  face  to  face  with  the  facts !  And  if  it  be  possible 
for  you  who  lead  sheltered  lives  on  shore  to  understand 
something  of  his  difficulties,  you  will  not  refuse  him 
your  admiration  and  sympathy  any  more  than  his 
friends  at  the  Wren  Lane  Mission  refused  him  the 
solid  support  of  their  regular  prayers. 

His  keen  eyes  soon  detected  the  absence  of  cer- 
tain members  of  his  crew  whom  he  had  mentally  noted 
before  as  being  "  slack  in  stays."  And  leaving  those 
who  were  at  work  to  get  on  with  their  tasks  by  them- 
selves for  awhile,  he  went  in  search  of  the  black  sheep. 
The  first  one  he  found  was  reclining  comfortably  in 
a  corner  of  the  fo'csle  with  pipe  in  full  blast,  and  a 
look  of  utter  indifference  on  his  face.  To  him  Saul 
suddenly  entered  with  the  crisp  remark,  "  Now,  then, 
young  man,  you're  in  the  wrong  place.  I  want  the 
work  finished,  and  when  it's  knock-off  time  I'll  let 
you  know."  He  was  a  big  Liverpool  Irishman,  a  pe- 
culiar breed  of  men  found  in  considerable  numbers 
at  sea,  and  hardly  to  be  matched  on  the  wide  earth's 
surface  for  truculence,  insubordination,  or  laziness 
when  they  give  their  minds  to  the  practice  of  these 
things,  as  so  many  of  them  do.  He  looked  up  noncha- 
lantly at  Saul,  saying,  "  Me  nairves  demand  a  verse  o' 
th'  poipe  at  reg'lar  intervals  t'  kape  'em  in  orrdher, 
an'  ef  yez  don't  like  me  little  ways  yez  kin  just  git 
t'  'ell  out  ov  it  an'  lave  me  recover.  Me  name's  Larry 
Doolan,  an'  I  come  from  Scotland  Road,  an'  I  don't 

118 


Saul's  Departure 


take  any  nigger-dhrivin'  frum  any  limejuicer 

afloat,  d'y«  moind."  Saul  listened  patiently,  and  when 
he  had  finished  for  all  answer  took  two  steps  towards 
him,  seized  him  by  waist  and  neck,  and  hurled  him  on 
deck.  He  fell  in  a  heap,  dazed.  When  he  recovered 
he  struggled  to  his  feet  and  made  a  blind  rush  at  the 
quiet  man  before  him,  his  mouth  full  of  cursing,  and 
red  murder  in  his  heart.  But  he  was  met  by  two  fists 
as  grimly  irresistible  as  a  stone  wall  would  have  been. 
And  as  he  staggered  back,  once  more  Saul's  quiet,  cer- 
tain voice  penetrated  his  ears :  "  You'd  better  get  on 
with  the  work,  and  not  try  and  impose  on  your  ship- 
mates. You'll  only  get  badly  hurt  if  you  keep  on  as 
you're  goin'."  This  self-evident  fact  was  so  very  clear 
to  him  that  after  a  momentary  pause  he  turned  and 
walked  aft  to  where  a  little  group  of  men  were  busy 
lashing  some  spars  in  the  starboard  scuppers,  and  with- 
out another  word  he  joined  in  the  work. 

Turning  sharply  round  to  go  and  seek  for  the  rest 
of  his  flock,  Saul  was  confronted  by  the  mate,  his  face 
wreathed  in  smiles.  "  Bo'sun,"  he  said,  "  you're  a 
man.  If  ever  you're  in  any  difficulty  with  these  chaps 
(but  I  don't  think  you  will  be),  just  count  on  me  to  the 
last  ounce.  I  don't  know  how  the  old  man  is,  for  this 
is  my  first  voy'ge  with  him,  but  the  second  mate's  all 
right,  and  I  believe  that  you  and  he  and  I  can  make  as 
comfortable  a  ship  of  this  as  a  man  needs  to  have  under 
his  feet." 

"  Thank  ye,  sir,"  replied  Saul.  "  I'll  do  my  best 
with  the  help  of  God  to  make  things  go  smoothly. 
But  to  do  that  I  can  see  that  maybe  things  will  go  a 
bit  rough  at  first.  There's  a  lot  more  chaps  loafing 
around  somewhere,  I'm  sure.  I'm  going  t'  look  for 
'em.  An'  if  you  don't  mind,  sir,  I'd  like  you  just  t' 

9  li 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

stand  around  and  wait  till  they  come  out."  Mr.  Car- 
roll just  nodded  assent,  and  Saul  dived  into  the  dark- 
some den.  Presently  sounds  of  trouble  were  heard, 
and  one  by  one  haggard,  unkempt  figures  appeared, 
muttering  curses,  but  making  haste  to  obey.  Finally, 
Saul  reappeared  smiling.  Approaching  the  mate,  he 
said  quietly :  "  I  think  that's  all  of  'em,  sir,  an'  from 
what  I  can  see  they  won't  give  much  more  trouble." 


CHAPTER  XIII 

THE    SEAL    OF   APOSTLESHIP 

BY  this  time  the  Asteroid  had  halted  at  Gravesend 
for  the  exchange  of  pilots,  and  there  was  a  temporary 
lull  in  the  work,  the  decks  being  beautifully  clear. 
Saul's  comprehensive  glance  having  satisfied  him  that 
he  might  safely  allow  it,  he  permitted  his  gang  to 
go  and  smoke,  while  he  himself  mounted  the  top-gal- 
lant fo'csle  in  the  hope  of  getting  a  word  with  his  fel- 
low Christian,  the  skipper  of  the  tug.  For  the  human 
heart,  whether  it  be  regenerate  or  no,  clings  to  its 
affinities,  loves  fellowship  with  its  like,  and  Saul  knew 
already  that  on  board  the  Asteroid  he  was  utterly  alone 
as  far  as  Christian  fellowship  went.  So  he  was  in- 
tensely gratified  when  the  tug  drifted  slowly  near 
enough  for  him  to  get  speech  of  his  brother  Stevens, 
and  presently  the  passing  watermen  and  crews  of 
barges  were  stiffened  with  amazement  to  hear  lan- 
guage being  exchanged  between  two  such  men  as  Saul 
and  Skipper  Stevens  as  they  had  hitherto  only  asso- 
ciated with  Hallelujah  Bands  or  the  Salvation  Army. 
The  colloquy  was  brief,  but  most  valuable  to  both,  espe- 
cially to  Saul,  who,  by  the  time  Stevens's  parting  "  God 
be  with  you,  brother,  an'  make  ye  a  blessin'  aboard  yer 
ship,"  had  come  pealing  across  the  water,  was  inefface- 
ably  stamped  in  the  sight  of  all  on  board  as  a  profess- 
ing Christian.  And  even  while  his  heart  beat  high 

121 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

with  the  knowledge  that  he  had  just  taken  opportunity 
of  most  publicly  confessing  his  Master,  he  was  being 
discussed  in  the  fo'csle  under  his  feet  with  a  vigour  of 
epithet  and  bitterness  of  hatred  that  seemed  as  if  noth- 
ing short  of  seeing  the  last  drop  of  his  blood  drained 
from  his  body  would  satisfy  it. 

They  were  a  mixed  crowd,  of  course,  but  for  a  won- 
der mostly  British.  And,  as  usual,  it  was  the  British 
part  that  was  most  intractable,  also  that  had  been  the 
worse  for  drink  when  turned  out.  There  were  a  couple 
of  Swedes  who  had  been  long  in  British  ships,  who 
were  as  drunken,  as  voluble,  and  as  truculent  as  any 
Briton  could  possibly  be ;  but  he  who  knows  much  of 
the  ways  of  men  before  the  mast  in  our  country's  ships 
will  know  that  while  the  Scandinavian  is  usually  the 
most  tractable  of  men,  a  few  years  of  sailing  in  British 
ships  under  our  peculiarly  soft  system,  or  want  of  sys- 
tem, will  often  convert  him  into  as  truculent  a  ruffian 
as  can  be  found.  It  may  sound  harsh  and  unpatriotic 
to  say  these  things,  but  if  one  knows  them  to  be  true, 
as  I  certainly  do,  is  it  not  kinder  to  state  the  truth  than 
to  prophesy  smooth  things  falsely  ?  British  seamen 
under  proper  control,  firm  and  just,  with  every  breach 
of  discipline  followed  with  automatic  certainty  by  its 
appropriate  punishment,  have  no  equals  in  the  world. 
The  proof  of  this  may  be  found  by  spending  a  few  days 
on  board  any  man-o'-war.  But  where,  as  usual  in  the 
British  sailing-ship  on  a  long  voyage,  men  are  really 
too  few  for  the  work  that  is  to  be  done,  food  is  of 
poor  quality  and  without  change,  accommodation 
much  worse  than  that  given  in  prison,  and  the  mainte- 
nance of  order  and  discipline  is  rendered  impossible  by 
the  state  of  the  laws  unless  the  officers  choose  to  risk 
their  certificates  by  the  use  of  physical  force,  there  the 

122 


The  Seal  of  Apostleship 

British  seaman  deteriorates  into  an  untamable,  worth- 
less blackguard.  His  virtues  of  self-reliance,  courage, 
doggedness,  and  resourcefulness  all  become  vices  by 
being  perverted  to  wrong  uses,  and  his  hapless  officers 
would  be  ready  to  exchange  him  gladly  for  any  other 
countryman  whatever.  It  is  this  general  characteristic 
of  crews  which  makes  the  Christian  seaman  ache  and 
long  to  relinquish  a  sea  life.  It  is  true  that  nowhere 
else  in  the  world  is  there  such  scope  for  really  valuable 
missionary  work  as  may  be  found  on  board  ship ;  but, 
on  the  other  hand,  it  is  equally  true  that  no  other  mis- 
sionaries in  the  world  are  made  to  live  under  such  ter- 
rible conditions.  Therefore,  it  is  at  present  unreason- 
able in  the  last  degree  to  expect  seamen  who  have  been 
converted  to  remain  W7illing  denizens  of  a  ship's  fo'csle 
for  one  day  longer  than  they  can  help,  or  even  to 
strive  very  eagerly  after  an  officer's  position  when  they 
know  what  manner  of  men  they  are  expected  to  rule 
without  even  the  shadow  of  disciplinary  force  to  aid 
them. 

And  so  the  very  means  that  are  taken  by  philan- 
thropists ashore  for  the  raising  of  the  sailor  become 
(as  did  the  late  Mr.  Thomas  Gray's  most  admirable 
"  Midge  "  scheme  of  remitting  money  home  from  the 
port  of  arrival)  the  reasons  why  life  on  board  merchant 
ships  still  remains  of  so  pagan  a  character — because 
the  best  men  use  their  newly  acquired  freedom  from 
vice  and  waste  to  seek  for  occupation  ashore. 

But  I  fear  I  am  leaving  Saul  too  long.  He  was 
now,  by  his  own  deliberate  act,  stamped,  as  I  have  said, 
with  the  stigma  of  Christianity.  For  the  time  being 
he  was  the  most  discussed  man  in  the  ship.  The  mate 
and  second  mate,  having  a  little  leisure  as  the  ship  was 
being  towed  swiftly  down  the  lower  reaches  of  the 

123 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

Thames,  held  a  most  serious  consultation  about  him. 
"  Well,"  said  the  mate  with  a  sigh,  as  if  giving  up  a 
too  difficult  problem,  "  I  knew  he  was  a  '  tote,'  'cause 
I  offered  him  a  drink  before  '  turn  to,'  an'  he  wouldn't 
have  it ;  but  after  seein'  him  yank  that  long  beast  out 
o'  th'  fo'csle  as  if  he'd  been  a  truss  of  straw  an'  block 
him  like  a  prize-fighter  when  he  tried  to  rush  him  after- 
ward, I  certainly  wasn't  prepared  to  find  him  a  Holy  - 
Joe.  Must  be  a  totally  new  kind.  I've  always  had  an 
idea  that  when  a  man  got  converted,  as  they  call  it,  all 
he  was  fit  for  afterward  was  goin'  about  with  a  face 
on  him  like  a  kite  mournin'  over  everybody's  sins,  an' 
preachin'  all  sorts  o'  funny  things  that  couldn't  pos- 
sibly be  practised,  besides  bein'  so  soft  that  he'd  let 
everybody  do  just  what  they  liked  with  him  for  fear  of 
losin'  his  character.  But  if  this  chap's  got  a  soft  spot 
about  him,  I  ain't  seen  it  yet.  If  he  goes  on  as  he's 
goin',  I  shall  begin  to  feel  that  there's  something  more 
in  the  business  than  I've  got  any  idea  of." 

Mr.  Kerton,  the  second  mate,  gnawed  his  mus- 
tache awhile  thoughtfully,  and  then  replied :  "  I  can't 
imagine  how  it  is,  but  although  I  know  there  are 
Christians  ashore  who  ain't  soft  a  bit — that  is,  silly 
soft — that  kind  don't  seem  to  thrive  aboard  ship.  I 
remember  when  I  was  servin'  my  time  our  old  man  got 
converted  one  trip.  The  previous  voyage  he  was  as 
good  a  man  as  I  want  to  be  shipmates  with.  He  got  a 
little  fresh  now  and  then,  but  never  to  do  any  harm, 
and  he  ruled  the  ship  in  such  a  fashion  that  a  man  no 
more  dare  give  cheek  to  an  officer  than  he  dare  jump 
overboard.  As  for  us  boys,  well,  we  did  pretty  much 
as  we  liked  below,  but  on  deck  he  made  us  toe  the 
mark  now,  I  tell  you.  An'  he  taught  us  our  biz,  too. 
We  wasn't  kept  grubbing  about  doin'  all  sort  of  dirty 

124 


The  Seal  of  Apostleship 

jobs  because  the  men  might  growl  at  bein'  told  to  do 
'em.  Then,  as  I  say,  he  got  converted,  an'  you  never 
saw  such  a  change  in  your  life.  He  had  a  prayer- 
meetin'  in  the  saloon  twice  a  week,  an'  service  on  a 
Sunday,  an'  the  fellows,  artful  devils  that  they  were, 
just  played  him  for  all  he  was  worth.  They  skulked 
and  got  saucy,  and  when  the  officers  tried  to  stop  them 
they  lodged  complaints  with  the  old  man,  lying  like 
clocks  to  make  their  case  good,  and  the  poor  old  chap 
believed  'em,  and  told  the  officers  to  deal  gently  with 
'em.  Result  was  there  was  anarchy  aboard  that  ship, 
and  when  we  got  to  Melbourne  she  was  so  bad  that  the 
mate  an'  second  mate  left  her.  Owing  to  the  slack 
way  things  was  done,  we  made  an  awful  passage  both 
out  an'  home,  and  when  we  did  get  back  the  poor  old 
fellow  left,  broken-hearted,  I  think,  because  his  system 
of  brotherly  love  didn't  work." 

Just  then  the  steward  called  the  mate  to  dinner,  and, 
telling  the  second  mate  to  see  whether  all  hands  were 
getting  their  mid-day  meal  in  proper  order,  Mr.  Carroll 
went  below,  to  renew  the  subject  with  the  captain.  Mr. 
Kerton,  having  passed  a  word  or  two  with  the  pilot, 
strolled  away  forrard  in  obedience  to  his  orders,  and, 
as  it  happened,  passed  the  door  of  the  berth  in  which 
lived  the  bo'sun,  carpenter,  and  sail-maker.  As  he  did 
so,  his  quick  ear  caught  the  sound  of  a  hoarse  voice 
raised  in  anger.  "  Looky  here,"  it  said,  "  afore  we 
goes  any  farrther,  let's  unnershtan',  once  an'  fur  a',  that 
thur's  gaun  tae  be  nae  daum  ipocreetical  carrin's-on  in 
this  hauf-deck.  Aam  a  Scotchmin  masel,  an'  ma  for- 
bears, daft  eedits,  wur  Covenanters,  sae  Ah  ken  fine 
the  haill  meseerable  feck  o'  shupersteeshun,  idolatry, 
an'  humbug  'at's  ca'ed  Christyaneety.  I'll  hae  none 
o't,  I  tell  ye,  whaur  Ah  leev.  An'  it  may's  well  be  set- 

125 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

telt  noo  an'  dune  w'it  as  gae  ony  farrtHe  r."  Interested, 
in  spite  of  himself,  Kerton  paused  just  out  of  sight. 
He  heard  the  strong,  clear  voice  of  Saul  replying: 
"  Chips,  my  lad,  you're  making  a  big  mistake.  If  I 
hadn't  felt  that  God's  hand  would  uphold  me  against 
the  whole  of  the  ship's  company,  if  necessary,  I 
wouldn't  be  here.  I  know  very  well  that  when  you  do 
get  a  bad  Scotchman,  which  isn't  often,  you  get  a 
mighty  bad  man,  but "  (here  his  voice  rose  a  little) 
"  if  you  were  twenty  bad  Scotchmen  rolled  into  one 
you  wouldn't  force  me  to  do  what  I  didn't  like  as  far 

as  my  conscience  is  concerned "     Crash,  and  the 

firm  tones  were  succeeded  by  the  panting  of  two  strong 
men  fiercely  struggling.  Chips  had  flung  himself  like 
a  wild-cat  at  Saul  and,  by  the  force  of  impact  unex- 
pected, had  borne  him  to  the  deck.  But  Saul's  muscles 
were  not  relaxed  by  weeks  of  dissipation,  and  slowly 
but  certainly  he  twisted  his  body  round  until  he  was 
uppermost.  Then,  by  a  great  effort,  he  rose,  dragging 
with  him  his  assailant,  and  together,  still  fiercely  strug- 
gling, they  emerged  on  deck,  leaving  the  floor  of  their 
apartment  strewn  with  the  fragments  of  their  dinner. 
The  second  mate,  as  in  duty  bound,  interfered,  but 
Saul  cried  cheerily,  "  Please  let  it  go  through,  sir ;  it'll 
save  lots  of  trouble  later."  But  by  this  time  the  crew 
had  left  their  dinner  and  clustered  aft,  while  hoarse 

voices  among  them  ejaculated,  "  Kill  the ,  Chips ; 

knife  him;  cut  his  liver  out;  choke  the  cantin' ," 

and  similar  kindly  encouragements.  Alas  for  their 
hopes,  it  was  immediately  evident  that  Chips  was  but 
as  a  babe  in  the  hands  of  a  giant.  Suddenly  his  body, 
a  confused-looking  heap,  flew  across  the  deck,  struck 
against  the  bulwarks,  and  lay  there  motionless.  With- 
out an  instant's  pause,  Saul  leaped  in  among  the  blas- 

126 


The  Seal  of  Apostleship 

pheming  crowd,  singling  out  the  most  eager,  potential 
murderer  of  them  all,  and  seizing  him  by  the  throat 
with  so  fell  a  grip  that  he  hung  limply  backward  on 
the  moment.  The  rest  dispersed  as  Saul's  voice  rang 
out :  "  Get  forrard,  every  one  of  you,  an'  finish  yer 
grub ;  it'll  be  time  to  turn  directly." 

By  this  time  the  skipper  had  arrived  on  the  scene, 
and  as  Saul,  somewhat  flushed,  but  still  smiling  pleas- 
antly, faced  him,  he  inquired  sternly  what  was  meant 
by  all  this  riotous  behaviour.  To  which  question  Saul 
answered :  "  Sir,  I  shipped  as  bo'sun  of  this  fine  ship 
of  yours  fully  capable  of  carrying  on  the  work,  and  I'll 
abide  by  your  officer's  evidence  whether  I  have  done 
so  up  till  now.  But  I  am  a  Christian  man,  and  can't 
bear  injustice.  So,  because  I've  made  the  loafers  work 
in  order  that  the  decent  fellows  sha'n't  be  worked  to 
death,  the  loafers  want  to  kill  me.  Please  take  no 
notice  of  that,  sir ;  I'll  look  out  for  them  and  get  plenty 
of  sleep.  Then,  because  I  thank  my  dear  Father  for 
my  food,  in  the  presence  of  my  two  berth-mates,  the 
carpenter  (poor  fellow,  I'm  afraid  he's  hurt)  flings  him- 
self at  me  like  a  wild  beast.  That's  all,  sir,  and  if  I 
have  offended  you  I'm  sorry.  But  I  think  you  know 
quite  as  well  as  I  do  that  a  little  trouble  at  the  first 
often  saves  a  lot  of  trouble  afterward." 

The  skipper,  a  hale,  bright  man  of  about  fifty  years, 
laid  a  hand  upon  Saul's  shoulder,  saying :  "  Bo'sun, 
I'm  proud  to  have  you  on  board  my  ship.  And  I'm 
sure  if  all  Christians  were  to  behave  as  you've  done, 
there'd  be  more  of  'em  about  than  there  are.  I  don't 
profess  to  be  a  Christian  myself,  but  I'll  back  you  up  as 
far  as  lies  in  me.  Mr.  Kerton,  see  that  the  bo'sun  has 
every  assistance  possible  at  all  times."  So  saying,  Cap- 
tain Vaughan  returned  to  his  dinner.  And  Saul  also, 

127 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

finding  that  for  the  present  things  had  straightened 
themselves  out  somewhat,  stepped  into  his  apartment 
to  see  if  there  still  remained  any  food  with  which  to 
satisfy  his  legitimate  hunger.  He  found  the  sail-maker 
in  an  exceedingly  amiable  frame  of  mind,  ready  to 
talk  upon  any  subject  whatever;  but  the  carpenter, 
poor  man,  sat  upon  the  spars  outside,  his  head  buried 
in  his  hands  in  an  attitude  of  deepest  dejection.  As 
soon  as  Saul  had  completed  his  meal  as  well  as  he  was 
able,  he  lit  his  pipe  and  stepped  out  to  where  the  car- 
penter sat.  Laying  his  hand  tenderly  upon  the  stoop- 
ing man's  shoulder,  he  said :  "  Chips,  my  boy,  don't 
mind  me ;  go  an'  get  a  smoke.  I'm  sure  we'll  be  the 
best  of  chums  yet.  There's  no  harm  done,  is  there  ?  " 
Chips  answered  never  a  word,  but  rose  to  his  feet  and 
went  into  the  berth,  leaving  Saul  sitting  in  the  placid 
enjoyment  of  his  tobacco,  an  expression  on  his  face 
as  of  a  man  who  had  not  a  single  care  or  worry  in  the 
world.  And  the  ship  sped  steadily  onward  out  to  sea. 
In  the  fo'csle  there  was  a  great  ferment.  For  the 
decent  fellows,  feeling  that  they  had  a  powerful  auxili- 
ary in  the  bo'sun,  began  to  assert  themselves.  In  many 
ships  these  willing  workers  lead  a  dog's  life  all  the  voy- 
age through,  for  the  sole  reason  that  those  in  authority 
do  not  do  their  duty.  But  in  the  fo'csle  of  the  Aste- 
roid there  was  felt  to  be  a  new  influence  at  work,  cast- 
ing its  weight  on  the  side  of  right  and  justice,  and  the 
men  who  under  unjust  conditions  would  have  suffered 
silently,  now  felt  impelled  to  take  a  firm  stand.  So, 
when  the  wastrels  renewed  their  curses  upon  the  man 
whom  they  hated,  dissentient  voices  arose.  One  man 
in  particular,  a  fair-haired  little  Scotchman,  boldly 
said :  "  Well,  boys,  Ah  don't  know  fhat  ye  think  aboot 
this  bizness,  but  Ah'm  of  opingon  'at  if  every  mon'll 

128 


The  Seal  of  Apostleship 

dae  fhat  he  signed  fur  we'll  have  a  daum  comfort- 
able ship.  Ah'm  no  vara  much  in  luve  wi'  nigger-driv- 
in'  masel' ;  'deed,  Ah'm  no  that  ower  fond  o'  work  ava, 
bit  the  wark  hes  tae  be  dune,  an'  ef  hauf  o's  hae  made 
up  oor  mines  tae  dae's  little's  we  can,  an'  th'  ither  hauf's 
tryin'  tae  dae  fhat  thae  signed  for,  why,  't'll  be  harrd 
on  the  willin'  anes.  Ah  don't  think  yon  bo'sun's  hauf 
a  bad  yin.  He  on'y  seems  tae  want  all  hands  tae  hev 
aiquel  richts,  an'  Ah'm  with  'm  theer  ivery  time." 

At  this  outspoken  speech  there  was  a  muttered 
volley  of  cursing,  amid  which  various  unprintable  epi- 
thets applied  to  sneaks,  tale-bearers,  toadies,  etc.,  were 
heard  frequently.  But  there  was  no  direct  reply.  No 
man  dared  say  boldly  that  for  his  part  he  had  shipped 
with  the  full  intention  of  doing  the  least  possible 
amount  of  work,  quite  regardless  of  the  fact  that  some 
of  his  shipmates  must  make  up  for  his  deficiencies. 
No ;  all  that  was  heard  was  a  series  of  vague  general- 
ities, and  it  was  quite  a  relief  when,  in  the  midst  of  it 
all,  Saul's  clear  voice  was  heard  crying  "  Turn  to  !  "  It 
was  also  quite  refreshing  to  see  the  alacrity  with  which 
the  time-honoured  summons  to  labour  was  obeyed. 
Even  those  who  had  growled  the  loudest  did  not  seem 
to  think  it  expedient  to  hang  back.  So,  within  five 
minutes  of  the  call  having  been  given,  not  only  were 
all  hands  on  deck,  but  they  were  at  work,  vigorously 
engaged  in  making  all  things  ready  for  the  sail-setting 
that  would  presently  be  demanded. 

The  mate  strolled  about  with  an  expression  of  per- 
fect contentment  upon  his  face,  watching  with  calm 
delight  the  unerring  certainty  of  all  his  bo'sun's  orders ; 
the  way  in  which  one  job  fitted  into  another,  and  the 
utter  absence  of  that  waste  of  time  so  often  seen  where 
two  men  stand  watching  a  third  at  work  because  he  in 


The   Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

authority  has  not  skill  enough  to  keep  them  alt  em- 
ployed. And  all  the  while,  through  gradually  wors- 
ening weather,  the  Asteroid  sped  steadily  seaward 
through  the  intricacies  of  the  Thames  estuary,  where, 
to  the  uninitiated  eye,  all  seems  such  plain  and  easy 
sailing,  while  in  reality,  beneath  that  vast  extent  of 
water  surface,  the  navigable  channels  run  like  the 
paths  in  a  maze,  and  great  breadths  of  ever-shifting 
sands  lurk  deadly  for  the  hapless  vessel  that  chances 
to  get  out  of  one  of  those  tortuous  passages  of  deep 
water.  But  in  spite  of  the  chill  in  the  air  searching 
their  impoverished  blood,  notwithstanding  the  steady 
downpour  of  sleety  rain  soaking  their  poor  garb  and 
giving  grim  premonitions  of  future  rheumatism,  all 
hands  felt  hopeful ;  for  they  knew  that  presently,  once 
round  the  North  Foreland,  the  wind,  now  dead  ahead 
or  due  east,  would  be  on  the  port  beam,  allowing  them 
to  take  full  advantage  of  it,  and  the  farther  along  they 
went  the  fairer  would  the  wind  be,  until  it  was  almost 
dead  aft.  This,  of  course,  owing  to  the  configuration 
of  the  English  Channel.  And  a  fair  wind  makes  up 
for  many  other  drawbacks,  more  especially  to  the  shiv- 
ering outward  bounder  on  board  of  a  huge  modern 
sailing-ship. 

Work  was  proceeding  thus  steadily  when  suddenly 
there  was  heard  a  loud  splash,  and  almost  at  the  same 
moment  Saul's  voice  was  heard  thunderously  exclaim- 
ing "  Man  overboard  !  "  With  one  gigantic  leap  from 
the  top-gallant  fo'csle  he  reached  the  main  deck  far 
abaft  the  foremast,  and  in  half  a  dozen  bounds,  as  it 
seemed,  he  was  on  the  poop,  had  torn  a  life-buoy  from 
its  lashings  and  hurled  it,  with  wonderful  accuracy  of 
aim,  close  by  the  side  of  Larry  Doolan,  the  recalcitrant 
A.  B.  of  the  morning,  who  was  now  just  on  the  edge 

130 


The  Seal  of  Apostleship 

of  Eternity's  abyss.  A  sharp  blast  on  the  mate's  whis- 
tle had  arrested  the  tug,  which  was  dropping  astern 
fast,  her  skipper  having  a  good  notion  of  what  was  the 
matter.  But  Saul  and  half  a  dozen  of  his  men  were 
tearing  like  madmen  at  the  port  quarter-boat,  striving 
to  free  it  from  its  paint-incrusted  gripes,  labouring 
to  move  the  rusted-in  chocks,  trying,  in  a  word,  to 
undo  in  one  frantic  minute  the  result  of  months  of 
neglect.  Yet  during  these  toils  Saul's  keen  glance 
never  for  a  moment  lost  sight  of  the  struggling  man 
in  the  wide  waste  of  waters.  He  was  no  great  distance 
away,  and  yet  to  Saul  it  seemed  certain  that  before 
their  boat  could  be  lowered  he  would  be  gone.  He 
did  not  appear  able  to  gain  the  life-buoy.  So,  seeing 
that  the  ship's  way  was  stopped,  and  that  the  tug  was 
coming,  Saul  ripped  off  his  oilskin  coat  and  trousers, 
kicked  off  his  boots,  and  sprang  from  the  quarter  into 
the  sea.  With  bated  breath  his  shipmates  watched 
him  as  he  swam  with  splendid  vigour  towards  the 
drowning  man ;  watched  him  tenderly  handling  him 
when  he  reached  him ;  saw  the  tug's  handy  little  boat 
dropped  from  her  davits  and  pulled  swiftly  towards  the 
pair ;  and,  finally,  with  a  rousing  cheer  that  came  from 
the  very  depths  of  their  hearts,  they  hailed  the  boat's 
return  with  their  shipmates  both  alive. 

Wearily  Saul  mounted  the  side,  for  the  physical 
strain  had  been  very  great.  But  his  face  was  bright 
with  the  consciousness  of  having  nobly  done  a  Chris- 
tian's part ;  and  a  feeling  he  could  not  suppress  took 
possession  of  him  that  he  had  been  granted,  and  had 
taken  advantage  of,  an  opportunity  of  justifying  his 
Christian  standpoint  that  would  have  more  weight 
with  his  shipmates  than  all  the  sermons  ever  written. 
He  was  calling  up  his  reserves  of  strength  to  go  on 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

with  his  work,  for  there  was  much  to  be  done  in  re- 
adjusting the  great  towing  hawser  slipped  by  the  tug, 
when  Mr.  Carroll  peremptorily  ordered  him  below 
for  a  change  of  clothes  and  rest.  He  made  but  a  feeble 
remonstrance,  for  even  his  great,  fresh  strength  had 
felt  the  drain  upon  it,  and  soon  he  was  in  his  berth, 
donning  a  suit  of  dry  clothes,  and  softly  crooning  to 
himself  one  of  his  favourite  songs — My  Jesus,  I  Love 
Thee,  I  Know  Thou  art  Mine ;  and  then,  standing  by 
the  side  of  his  bunk  with  his  head  dropped  on  his 
hands,  he  unpacked  his  heart  of  his  overload  of  thanks 
— broken,  ungrammatical,  disconnected — as  unlike 
"  made-up  "  praise  as  could  well  be,  but  fragrant  with 
the  true  incense  of  a  grateful  soul.  He  lay  down  in 
great  peace,  and  in  two  minutes  was  asleep. 

Meanwhile  poor  Larry,  although  tended  most  care- 
fully by  the  skipper,  had  been  through  a  critical  time. 
His  life-tides  had  run  very  low  by  reason  of  his  mad 
behaviour  while  ashore,  and  this  tremendous  shock, 
coming  as  it  did  upon  a  frame  so  enfeebled  as  his,  was 
almost  more  than  he  could  bear.  So,  for  a  time,  it  was  a 
matter  for  grave  anxiety  with  the  skipper,  who  natu- 
rally was  intensely  desirous  that  his  voyage  should 
not  begin  in  so  sad  a  fashion.  He  watched  breathlessly 
by  the  side  of  the  almost  moribund  man,  administering 
from  time  to  time  such  restoratives  as  his  scanty  medi- 
cal knowledge  suggested  to  him,  until  at  last  he  was 
rewarded  by  seeing  the  poor  fellow's  breathing  be- 
come regular,  his  temperature  fall,  and  natural  sleep 
ensue.  Greatly  relieved,  the  old  man  left  the  spare 
berth  in  the  saloon  where  his  patient  was  lying,  and 
reached  the  deck  in  time  to  anticipate  the  pilot  send- 
ing for  him. 

The  ship  was  now  well  round  the  North  Foreland, 
132 


The  Seal  of  Apostleship 

and  had  ceased  her  rebellious  buck-jumping  motion 
caused  by  the  ruthless  dragging  of  the  tug  through  the 
short  channel  seas  coming  dead  on  end.  Orders  were 
issued  to  set  sail,  and  it  did  the  skipper's  heart  good 
to  see  how  thoroughly  his  new  bo'sun  understood  his 
work.  For  Saul,  rested  and  refreshed,  had  returned  to 
his  duty,  in  spite  of  the  mate's  remonstrances,  and  the 
mellow  thunder  of  his  voice  reverberated  through  the 
ship  as  he  ably  carried  out  the  orders  given  him  by 
the  mate.  There  is  to  my  mind  no  better  test  of 
seaman-like  smartness  than  the  setting  of  a  big  ship's 
sails  from  bare  poles  such  as  may  be  seen  when  the  tug 
is  about  to  leave  and  the  wind  has  just  hauled  fair. 

At  no  time  is  a  bungler  so  easily  detected,  and  the 
amateur  sailor  who  in  the  cosiness  of  his  study  ashore 
writes  glibly  of  the  doings  of  the  men  of  the  sea  would 
here  come  quickly  and  irremediably  to  grief.  For  one 
thing,  it  should  always  be  remembered  that  the  sailing- 
ship  officer  of  the  present  day  has  such  a  tiny  handful 
of  men  with  which  to  manipulate  the  gigantic  wings  of 
his  craft.  So  that  in  the  disposition  of  such  forces  as 
he  may  find  at  his  disposal  there  is  ample  room  for 
skill  in  generalship,  while  he  must  ever  be  on  the  watch 
for  those  very  tiresome  members  of  a  ship's  company 
who  have  made  a  study  of  the  conservation  of  energy 
— their  own  energy,  of  course — his  eye  must  detect 
on  the  instant  when  a  man  is  not  putting  his  full 
strength  into  a  pull.  It  is  popularly  supposed  by  those 
who  take  interest  in  the  subject,  and  therefore  should 
know  something  about  it,  that  the  enormous  sailing- 
ships  of  modern  days  have  steam  power  wherewith  to 
supplement  the  strength  of  the  depleted  crews  now  so 
universal.  Well,  they  have,  most  of  them,  a  small 
steam-engine,  but  its  use  is  confined  to  working  cargo 

133 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

in  port ;  it  is  not  used  at  all  at  sea.  The  working  of  the 
ship  is  now,  as  it  always  was,  a  matter  of  muscle.  But 
this  is  an  "old  grievance,  and  one  perhaps  somewhat 
out  of  place  here. 

Feeling  that  they  had  a  man  over  them,  not  only 
one  that  would  stand  no  nonsense,  but  one  that  knew 
his  business  most  thoroughly,  the  fast-recovering  sea- 
men worked  well,  even  the  duffers  (about  half  of  their 
number)  doing  their  best  to  gain,  as  they  supposed,  the 
goodwill  of  their  bo'sun.  And  when  off  Dungeness 
the  pilot  left,  and  the  tug,  unable  longer  to  keep  ahead 
of  the  stately  craft  now  asserting  herself,  slipped  the 
hawser,  all  hands  were  in  a  much  more  comfortable 
frame  of  mind  than  any  of  them,  with  the  exception  of 
Saul,  could  have  conceived  possible  four  hours  earlier. 
Sail  after  sail  was  added,  until  every  available  stitch 
was  set,  in  spite  of  the  threatening  appearance  of  the 
weather.  For  while  the  master  was  undoubtedly  a 
prudent  seaman,  he  realized  that  this  splendid  oppor- 
tunity for  getting  out  of  narrow  waters  must  be  utilized 
even  at  a  little  risk,  and  his  evident  courage  raised 
him  greatly  in  the  estimation  of  his  crew.  And  so  it 
came  about  that  when  the  hands  had  been  mustered, 
the  watches  set,  and  the  true  sea  routine  entered  upon, 
there  were  two  men  on  board  the  Asteroid  who  could 
safely  count  upon  getting  all  out  of  the  crew  they  had 
to  give,  unconscious  tributes  to  real  worth.  Those 
two  men  were  Saul  and  Captain  Vaughan. 


134 


CHAPTER  XIV 

PROGRESS 

FROM  Saul,  with  his  voyage  well  begun  in  a  double 
sense,  speeding  westward  for  the  bright,  broad  open- 
ness of  the  deep  blue  sea,  back  to  Rotherhithe  is  by  no 
means  a  pleasant  transition.  Man's  wonderful  adapta- 
bility to  his  environment  makes  even  the  most  sordid 
conditions  of  life  endurable,  and  even,  wonderful  as 
it  may  seem,  by  some  unnatural  perversion  of  desire, 
preferable  to  infinitely  better  and  healthier  ones.  But 
to  those  who,  like  seafarers,  are  accustomed  to  spend 
the  most  of  their  lives  in  an  ocean  of  fresh  pure  air  and 
sunshine,  the  crowded  lanes  and  alleys  of  our  great 
cities  seem  as  stifling  as  any  cellar,  and  if  we  are  at  all 
observant,  we  soon  become  filled  with  admiration  for 
those  brave  souls  who  dwell  in  them  and  yet  preserve 
cheerfulness,  cleanliness,  and  respectability.  Con- 
versely, although  full  of  pity  for  them,  we  have  no 
wonder  that  the  ruffians,  both  male  and  female,  who 
infest  so  many  of  our  poor  quarters,  are  what  they 
are ;  we  feel  that  only  a  miracle  can  change  them,  lift- 
ing them  on  to  a  higher  plane  of  living,  filling  their 
hearts  with  aspirations  after  better  things,  and  even 
altering  the  very  fashion  of  their  faces. 

What  amount  of  loving,  helpful  recognition,  then, 
can  be  considered  too  much  to  tender  to  the  earnest 
souls,  of  whatever  church  or  no  church  they  profess  to 
be  members,  who  live  in  the  midst  of  squalor,  airless- 
US 


The   Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

ness,  and  riot,  earning  their  own  living,  and  devoting 
all  their  scanty  leisure  to  the  Master's  work  in  the 
Master's  way  as  far  as  they  are  able  to  understand  it? 
Yet  by  one  of  the  strangest,  most  pitiful  perversions  of 
good  to  evil  which,  alas !  is  so  characteristic  of  human- 
ity, an  enormous  amount  of  energy  generated  among 
these  humble  servants  of  God  has  been  dissipated  in 
squabbles  with  one  another  about  non-essentials. 
Not  merely  that  one  "  gathering  "  or  "  church  "  squab- 
bles with  another,  but  that  internecine  strife  arises  and 
often  ends  in  disruption.  This  fissiparous  tendency  is 
almost  entirely  confined  to  the  smallest  of  conventicles, 
which  are  most  of  them,  in  turn,  offshoots  from  that 
body  which  is  usually  known  as  the  "  Plymouth 
Brethren."  The  great  bodies,  such  as  the  Baptists, 
Congregationalists,  Wesleyans,  etc.  (I  do  not  men- 
tion the  Established  Church  or  the  Roman  Catholics 
in  this  connection,  for  obvious  reasons),  have  long  re- 
garded such  small  gatherings  as  I  have  described  with 
distrust  and  dislike,  feeling,  what  is  no  doubt  in  a 
measure  true,  that  small  bodies  of  uneducated  men  and 
women  like  these,  without  any  visible  head,  possessed 
of  a  certain  definite  knowledge  of  theology,  are  apt 
to  drift  into  all  sorts  of  strange  by-paths  of  heresy  from 
which  a  little  grounding  in  theology  would  have  saved 
them.  In  other  words,  it  is  felt  that  so  long  as  they 
confine  themselves  to  preaching  the  Gospel  that  has 
been  the  power  of  God  unto  their  salvation,  they  do  a 
mighty  work  in  perhaps  the  best  possible  way ;  but  that 
when  they  take  to  expounding  Scripture  in  the  seclu- 
sion of  the  hall  to  members  of  the  church  they  do  a 
great  deal  of  harm,  not  merely  by  the  dissemination  of 
false  doctrine,  but  by  the  generation  of  much  heated, 
angry  feeling  one  towards  another. 

136 


Progress 


It  is  in  consequence  of  this,  perhaps,  more  than  for 
any  other  reason,  that  gatherings  like  that  of  the  Wren 
Lane  Mission  have  been  so  much  ignored  by  the  large 
Christian  bodies  who  have  been  compelled  to  take  the 
Salvation  Army  into  serious  account.  Not  that  they 
love  the  S.  A.  methods  more,  or  are  at  all  impressed 
by  its  peculiar  system  of  autocratic  government,  still 
less  that  they  admire  the  absence  of  official  recognition 
of  the  Lord's  Supper  by  its  councils.  But  its  organi- 
zation is  so  splendid,  its  discipline  so  perfect,  and  the 
hold  it  has  obtained  (a  hold  always  making  for  righte- 
ousness, be  it  noted)  upon  great  masses  of  humble 
people  so  secure,  that  it  has  compelled  recognition 
which  is  denied  to  the  weak  and  scattered  little  con- 
venticles such  as  I  have  been  attempting  to  describe. 
But  a  broader  and  more  Christian  spirit  of  toleration 
is  manifest  among  us  and  gaining  ground  every  day. 
The  union  of  the  Free  Churches  is  a  mighty  stride 
towards  that  concentration  of  the  forces  of  good 
against  the  forces  of  evil,  without  which  Christian  prog- 
ress can  at  best  only  lamely  limp  along  towards  pure 
and  primitive  Christianity,  a  recognition  that  the 
world's  hope  lies  entirely  in  the  adoption  of  those  first 
principles  inculcated  by  Jesus,  and  the  consequent 
cleansing  of  Christian  teaching  from  the  deadening 
incrustations  it  has  gathered  through  the  centuries  by 
the  interested  efforts  of  professional  religionists,  until 
the  Christ  of  the  gospels  has  been  entirely  hidden  away 
from  the  sight  of  the  common  people  unless  they  got 
outside  of  the  churches  and  sought  him  individually. 

These  matters,  however,  though  entirely  relevant 
to  my  story,  must  not  be  allowed  to  hinder  its  progress. 
Without  touching  upon  them  it  would  be  almost  im- 
possible to  understand  the  position  of  Jemmy  Maskery 

137 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

and  his  adherents,  who,  as  I  hope  I  have  made  clear, 
are,  although  entirely  real  characters  under  assumed 
names,  typical  representatives  of  an  enormous  number 
of  such  bodies.  So  that,  in  giving,  as  I  hope  to  do,  a 
history  of  the  Wren  Lane  Mission  over  a  goodly  por- 
tion of  its  career,  I  hope  to  let  that  great  reading  public, 
which  is  interested  in  the  uplifting  of  the  people,  have 
some  reason  to  hope  that  even  in  the  darkest  corners 
of  our  cities  God  has  not  left  his  work  to  be  carried  on 
altogether  by  the  overburdened  clergy,  but  that  un- 
paid and  unrecognised  missionaries  are  ever  busy  tell- 
ing the  story  of  the  God-man  of  Nazareth,  and  by  their 
lives  endeavouring  to  commend  him  to  their  fellows. 

After  Saul's  departure,  Jemmy  for  a  time  felt  as  if 
he  had  lost  his  main  support.  For  he,  like  most  of  us, 
however  strong  in  our  faith,  loved  some  visible  friend 
in  whose  wisdom  and  love  he  had  much  confidence; 
loved  to  look  up  to  him,  and,  unconsciously,  lean  on 
him  more  than  was  quite  prudent  or  justifiable.  But, 
as  Pug  Maskery  had  foretold,  the  influx  of  those  who 
had  been  converted  on  the  memorable  evening  imme- 
diately before  Saul's  departure  necessitated  an  almost 
immediate  enlargement  of  their  premises  if  the 
"  church  "  was  to  be  held  together.  Besides,  Jemmy 
was  a  profund  believer  in  and  practiser  of  baptism  by 
immersion,  and  he  wanted  a  pool  of  their  own  in  the 
Hall,  "  so  we  shawn't  be  beholden  to  nobody,"  as  he 
put  it.  Therefore,  negotiations  were  at  once  opened 
with  the  owner  of  the  property  for  the  leasing  of  the 
adjoining  stable.  He,  like  a  prudent  man  of  the  world, 
without  any  scruples,  at  once  asked  double  the  rent 
that  he  had  hitherto  received,  stipulating,  as  before, 
that  all  alterations,  repairs,  etc.,  must  be  carried  out 
by  the  lessees.  This  brought  the  rent  up  to  £40  a  year, 

138 


Progress 


fortunately  without  taxes,  being  a  building  for  relig- 
ious services  only,  and  in  addition  it  meant  at  least 
another  £20  at  once  laid  out  upon  the  necessary  altera- 
tions and  cleansing.  Now,  trivial  as  these  sums  may 
sound  to  some  of  us,  they  were  to  the  restricted  ideas 
of  Jemmy  and  his  friends  prodigious,  and  even  Brother 
Salmon  shook  his  head  despondently.  But,  as  so  often 
happens,  it  was  the  new  blood  that  provided  the  needed 
stimulus.  Bill  Harrop,  the  new  convert  whose  sudden 
restoration  had  paved  the  way  for  such  a  great  in- 
gathering on  the  night  just  referred  to,  rose  in  the 
church  meeting  and  spoke  for  the  first  time.  "  Brothers 
an'  sisters,"  he  said,  "  I  got  a  lot  er  leeway  ter  make  up. 
I  don'  know  whether  I  sh'l  git  much  charnce,  but  I 
'ope  I  shall.  I  don'  know  'ow  ter  tell  yer  'ow  glad  I 
am,  an'  'ow  much  good  you've  done  me,  but  if  any 
of  yer  wants  ter  know  go  an'  arsk  my  missus  an'  th 
pore  kids.  Y'  all  know  I  c'd  earn  good  money  if  I'd 
on'y  keep  sober  long  enough.  Well,  the  bloke  I  ben 
a-workin'  for  off  an'  on  fur  years  (w'en  I  did  work), 
'e  ses  t'  me  on  the  Monday  mornin'  arter  I  got  con- 
verted, e'  ses,  '  Bill  Harrop,'  'e  ses,  '  I  'ear  you've  jined 
the  Salvation  Army.'  '  No,  I  ain't,'  I  ses,  ses  I,  '  I've 
on'y  come  t'  Jesus,  th'  workin'  man's  Friend,  an'  I 
b'lieve  'e's  got  'old  of  me  so  solid  'at  'e'll  never  let 
me  go  any  more.'  '  Oh,  well,  it's  all  the  same,'  'e  ses. 
'  Any'ow,  I'm  jolly  glad  t'  'ear  of  it,  'cause  I  wants  a 
lot  of  work  done,  an'  if  this  'ere  business  is  goin'  t' 
keep  ye  orf  th'  oozeboo,  w'y,  I'll  be  delighted.  An' 
more,'  'e  ses,  ses  'e,  '  I'll  tell  yer  wot  I'll  do  jus'  f'r 
a  lark :  every  day  'at  you  keeps  orf  it  I'll  give  them 
people  wot's  got  'old  of  yer  a  tanner ! '  Well,  all  I  got 
ter  say  more  is  'at  as  I  useter  spend  at  least  three  bob  a 
day  in  tiddley  w'en  I  was  at  work,  I  think  I  c'n  spare 

139 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

a  kiyah  *  a  day  t'  make  the  governor's  tanner  two 
og.f  An'  I'll  come  an'  do  my  bit  of  graft  in  the  'All, 
too,  w'enever  I  got  any  time  orf.  Gord  bless  yer." 

This  was  a  clincher.  It  changed  the  tone  of  the 
meeting  directly,  and  it  was  at  once  decided  that  every 
brother  and  sister  in  the  meeting  should  make  them- 
selves responsible  to  God  for  a  shilling  a  week  over 
their  ordinary  contributions.  And  as  there  were  now 
twenty-two  members,  that  meant  2,2,5.  per  week  addi- 
tional, for  it  was  almost  certain  that  they  would  starve 
before  allowing  their  contributions  to  lapse.  And  it 
is  wonderful  to  see  how  such  poor  people  as  these  are 
not  only  pride  themselves  upon  keeping  their  obliga- 
tions, but  in  how  mariy  little  ways  they  are  helped  by 
one  another  to  do  so. 

Jemmy  and  the  brethren,  being  thus  re-invigorated, 
bestirred  themselves  mightily,  and  the  begging  that 
went  on  at  the  biweekly  open-airs  was  phenomenal 
both  in  its  persistency  and  its  results.  As  Jemmy  told 
his  auditors :  "  Th'  bad  wevver  '11  soon  be  'ere,  w'en 
we  sharn't  be  able  t'  git  out  t'  ye  wiv  th'  glad  tidin's, 
'n  if  we  ain't  got  no  place  t'  arsk  ye  inter,  w'y,  ye'll  be 
as  bad  orf  as  ever.  Nah  we've  a-promised  th'  Lord  'at 
we  won't  go  back  t'  that  state  o'  fings  'cause  we  bin  so 
blessed  an'  encouraged  of  late,  so  'ave  annuver  feel 
rahnd  in  them  there  pockets  o'  yours  'n'  see  if  ye 
carn't  find  anuvver  stiver  t'  put  in  this  bank."  In  re- 
sponse to  this  fervid  appeal  the  coppers  simply  rained 
in ;  but  it  was  reserved  for  an  old  seller  of  fire-wood, 
who  had  recently  been  brought  in,  to  overtop  all  the 
previous  efforts  in  that  direction.  "  Woody  " — he  was 
never  called  anything  else,  and  had  almost  forgotten 

*  Eighteen-pence.  f  Shillings. 

140 


Progress 


his  real  name — had  been  a  consistently  walking  Chris- 
tian for  many  years,  during  the  whole  of  which  he 
had  never,  even  under  the  most  severe  pressure,  en- 
tered a  public-house,  nor  done  anything  else  that  the 
most  censorious  could  lay  hold  of.  Then  his  wife  sud- 
denly died — his  partner  of  over  forty  years.  And  on 
the  evening  of  the  same  day  his  old  horse,  represent- 
ing almost  the  whole  of  his  capital,  died  also.  The 
two  blows,  following  so  rapidly  upon  one  another,  must 
have  temporarily  unhinged  his  mind,  for  after  a  period 
of  dumb  crouching  in  his  desolate  home,  he  rose  up, 
went  straight  to  the  nearest  public-house,  and  got 
drunk.  A  policeman,  new  to  the  beat,  arrested  him  and 
locked  him  up.  Joe  Jimson,  the  stevedore,  saw  him 
being  marched  off,  slowly  realized  what  had  happened, 
and  bailed  him  out.  But  he  had  "  broken  out,"  and 
although  Jimson  had  acted  a  friendly  part,  he  was  un- 
able to  follow  it  up  by  pouring  oil  and  wine  into  the 
wounds  of  that  poor  bleeding  old  heart.  And  as  he 
had  thus  openly  backslidden  after  being  a  shining  light 
at  open-air  meetings  for  so  long,  his  fall  was  grievously 
felt,  and  the  open  hand  of  fellowship  was  tight  shut 
against  him.  Even  Jemmy,  though  in  open  meeting 
he  always  invited  the  general  backslider  to  return, 
never  sought  out  this  particular  one,  who  was  so  well 
known  to  him,  and,  indeed,  had  never  once  shaken 
hands  with  him  since  his  fall. 

It  fell  out,  however,  that  on  the  great  evening  above 
referred  to,  something,  he  did  not  attempt  to  realize 
what,  had  drawn  poor  old  Woody  to  the  outskirts  of 
the  meeting.  Things  had  been  bitterly  bad  with  him. 
For  six  months  he  had  hardly  been  able  to  keep  body 
and  soul  together  by  dragging  his  little  truck  of  fire- 
wood about  the  streets,  and  often  he  was  at  starvation 

141 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

point  because  he  could  not  make  known  his  need  to 
any  one.  While,  then,  he  prowled  around  the  fringe 
of  the  crowd,  one  of  the  latest  adherents  to  the  Band, 
Mary  Seton,  the  coffee-house  waitress,  saw  him,  and, 
catching  his  eye,  said :  "  O  Woody,  I  am  glad  to 
see  you  'ere.  You  know  I've  joined  'em,  don't  yer?  " 
Woody  shook  his  head,  but  looked  his  astonishment, 
while  she  in  her  eagerness  and  simplicity  told  him  her 
story.  Now,  Woody  had  known  her  from  a  child,  and 
had  often  in  his  days  of  service  for  God  warned  and 
advised  her,  only  to  be  roundly  abused  in  the  current 
vernacular  for  his  pains.  It  was  the  psychological 
moment,  also,  although,  of  course,  neither  of  them  were 
aware  of  it.  At  any  rate,  the  immediate  and  blessed 
result  was  that  Woody  came  back  from  his  wanderings 
outside  the  fold,  and  at  the  first  opportunity  confessed 
his  wrong-doing  in  the  sight  of  all  assembled  on  the 
"  Waste."  He  made  no  excuses  for  himself,  was  un- 
sparing in  his  condemnation  of  his  own  folly  in  thus  vol- 
untarily shutting  himself  out  from  the  fellowship  with 
the  Father,  and  rejoiced  exceedingly  that  by  the  testi- 
mony of  a  mere  babe  in  Christ  he  had  been  won  back 
in  spite  of  the  shame  that  had  so  long  kept  him  away. 
After  the  meeting  was  over  all  the  members  of  the 
mission  crowded  round  him,  and  thanked  God  that 
they  could  have  fellowship  with  him  once  more ;  but 
every  one  felt  in  greater  or  less  degree,  according  to 
their  capacity  for  feeling,  that  had  they  acted  a  brother's 
or  sister's  part  towards  the  poor  old  man  he  might  long 
ago  have  been  restored — nay,  he  might  never  have 
fallen.  But  he  had  no  reproaches  for  them ;  his  cup 
was  brimming  with  gladness ;  and,  as  if  to  put  the  final 
touch  upon  his  joy,  an  old  customer  of  his  lent  him  a 
pony  and  cart  the  next  day,  telling  him  that  he  had  at 

142 


Progress 


present  no  use  for  it,  having  gone  into  a  different  line 
of  business,  and  not  being  able  to  find  a  market  for 
either  animal  or  vehicle  just  then. 

As  if  to  try  and  make  amends  for  his  long  neglect 
of  his  Master's  business,  Woody  was  now  more  dili- 
gent in  his  attendances  at  the  various  meetings  in  the 
southeast  of  London  than  he  had  ever  been.  Adhering 
to  his  old  custom,  he  did  not  become  a  formal  mem- 
ber of  any  particular  one,  but  whenever  anything 
special  was  going  on  he  would  generally  be  found 
helping.  So,  on  this  occasion,  when  it  appeared  as  if 
the  last  copper  had  been  drawn  out  of  the  crowd, 
Woody  stepped  forward,  and  in  a  hush  so  profound  that 
the  beating  of  the  people's  hearts  was  almost  audible, 
he  told  the  story  of  his  conversion  long  years  before, 
of  his  falling  away,  and  his  recent  return.  His  words 
were  of  the  roughest,  his  voice  rusty  and  broken,  but 
his  transparent  sincerity  was  so  manifest  that  he 
swayed  the  people  as  the  wind  sways  the  corn.  And 
when  at  last  he  drewr  out  a  crown  piece  knotted  in  the 
corner  of  a  piece  of  rag,  expectation,  wonder,  and  in- 
terest were  almost  painful  in  their  intensity. 

Holding  the  coin  up  between  his  right  forefinger 
and  thumb,  he  said :  "  Dear  people,  this  'ere  dollar's  my 
market  money.  Most  on  yer  know  wot  I^means.  If  I 
ain't  got  it,  I  carn't  buy  no  wrood,  an'  kinsequontly  I 
carn't  sell  none.  That  means  no  grub  for  me  nor  the 
pony  neither.  Means  no  rent,  too.  But  I'm  so  shore 
'at  the  Lord  loves  me  ter  trust  'im,  I'm  so  shore  'at 
'e  wornts  me  ter  give  yer  a  lead  in  this  'ere  bizness,  'at 
I'm  a-goin'  t'  drop  it  right  inter  this  ring  an'  trust 
Mm  t'  pervide  me  wiv  all  I  wants  fer  termorrer.  'Ere 
it  goes,"  and  he  spun  the  coin  into  the  middle  of  the 
circle.  "  Xah  'oo's  a-goin'  t'  foller  suit?  "  When  you 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

read  of  the  effect  of  Girolamo  Savonarola's  preaching 
in  Florence  your  hearts  are  touched ;  the  glamour  of 
mediaeval  religion  seizes  upon  your  imagination,  and 
in  fancy  you  witness  the  aristocratic  beauties  gladly  de- 
spoiling themselves  of  their  jewels.  But  in  Rother- 
hithe,  in  the  nineteenth  century,  in  the  midst  of  mean 
streets  and  sordid  environment,  and  above  and  beyond 
all  in  matters  contemporary  with  yourself,  you  may 
remain  unmoved,  unbelieving.  So  did  not  Woody's 
hearers.  They  gave,  yes,  they  gave  up  all  they  had 
retained  for  what  they  had  considered  essential  neces- 
saries, and  those  who  had  nothing  to  give  wept  with 
vexation.  And,  in  spite  of  the  poverty  of  the  neigh- 
bourhood, when  the  meeting  was  closed  £9  14^.  had 
been  collected  by  the  Band,  which,  as  Jemmy  said  ex- 
ultingly,  would  go  "  a  long  way  to'rds  finishin'  the  little 
place,  if  it  didn't  do  so  right  aht" 

As  the  meeting  broke  up  and  Woody  was  slowly 
wandering  off  the  "  Waste  "  to  see  about  his  faithful 
pony's  welfare  for  the  night,  he  felt  a  touch  upon  his 
shoulder,  and  turning,  was  clasped  by  the  hands  of  a 
strange  man  to  him,  who  said :  "  You  don't  know  what 
you've  done  for  me.  I'd  been  scrapin'  some  money 
together  to  go  and  do  a  deed  of  darkness  with.  Here's 
a  sovereign  of  it  for  you,  and  I'm  going  back  to  my 
poor  wife  and  children."  And  he  was  gone.  For  a 
moment  Woody  stood  looking  at  the  coin  almost 
stupidly ;  then,  with  the  simple  remark,  "  It's  just  like 
5im,"  he  continued  his  way  stableward,  his  withered 
lips  crooning  the  refrain  of  The  Pearly  Gates. 

Thus  encouraged,  Jemmy  completed  the  bargain 
with  the  rapacious  landlord,  and  signed  the  agreement 
to  take  the  said  premises  for  a  term  of  seven,  fourteen, 
or  twenty-one  years,  as  well  as  covenanted  to  make 

144 


Progress 


all  such  alterations  and  do  all  such  repairs  as  might  be 
necessary.  And  from  that  time  forth  it  is  undeniable 
that  the  Maskery  household  had  a  bad  time.  Fortu- 
nately the  boys  were  earning  fairly  good  money,  and 
were  exemplary  in  their  conduct  in  bringing  it  home ; 
but  Jemmy — well,  as  Mrs.  Maskery  said,  he  might 
almost  as  well  not  be  alive  for  all  he  brought  in.  The 
fact  was  that  he  was  unable  to  think  of  more  than  one 
thing  at  a  time.  His  restricted  mind  would  not  enter- 
tain the  conduct  of  his  own  affairs  and  those  of  the 
mission  at  once,  and  as,  in  his  opinion,  the  affairs  of 
the  mission  were  by  far  the  most  important,  his  own 
business  suffered  accordingly.  I  do  not  excuse  or  ac- 
cuse him.  I  merely  state  the  facts. 

It  was  undeniable,  though,  that  he  pat  an  enormous 
amount  of  energy  into  the  work  of  the  mission — so 
much,  indeed,  that  the  ensuing  Saturday  after  the  open- 
air  meeting,  when  so  much  money  was  collected,  saw 
once  more  a  swarm  of  men,  women,  and  even  children 
collected  at  Wren  Lane,  all  toiling  like  trolls  to  get  the 
necessary  work  done.  In  the  midst  of  them  all  were 
Jemmy  and  Woody,  armed  with  clay-spades,  delving 
like  gold-miners  to  get  a  pool  dug  out.  And  all  around 
them  their  friends  worked  at  wall-scraping,  roof-cleans- 
ing, carting  away  debris  such  as  must  be  found  in  a 
long-neglected  stable,  and  cutting  and  fitting  match- 
boarding.  But  in  the  very  nature  of  things  such  a  task 
as  this  could  not  be  carried  through  in  quite  the  same 
time  as  the  previous  one.  For  one  thing,  it  was  four 
times  as  heavy,  without  the  additional  labour  of  dig- 
ging out  the  pool. 

The  ardour  of  the  toilers,  however,  knew  no  abate- 
ment, and  on  the  third  Sunday  after  the  appeal  had 
been  made,  the  Wren  Lane  Mission  was  in  possession 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

of  quite  a  large  hall,  seated  for  three  hundred  people, 
well  ventilated,  but  not  well  warmed.  The  walls  were 
match-boarded  half-way  up,  and  prettily  distempered 
for  the  other  half;  while  the  overhead  beams  were 
scraped  and  varnished,  and  the  great  centre  beam  was 
elaborately  lettered  by  a  brother  from  a  distance,  who 
was  a  facile  writer,  with  the  text,  "  Oh,  enter  into  His 
gates  with  praise."  And,  best  of  all,  the  only  bill  left 
unpaid  was  for  the  forms.  But  they  had  been  supplied 
by  a  friend  at  cost  price,  and  as  he  was  in  no  hurry  for 
his  money  the  minds  of  the  brethren  were  quite  at  ease. 
There  were  no  opening  ceremonies  when  the  Hall 
was  finished,  only  a  meeting  of  all  those  who  had  lent 
a  willing  hand  in  the  building  of  it,  and  a  prolonged 
service  of  the  usual  character.  But  all  who  took  part 
were  really  in  earnest,  and  especially  so  the  minister 
of  a  Baptist  chapel  some  little  distance  away,  who, 
partly  from  curiosity  and  partly  from  goodwill,  had 
consented  to  be  present  and  deliver  an  oration.  He 
was  certainly  interested,  but  undoubtedly  somewhat 
chagrined  also  because  his  carefully  prepared  periods 
fell  quite  flat.  His  auditory  had  become  accustomed 
to  a  much  more  primitive  style  of  discourse,  and  did 
not  appreciate  his  address  at  all.  He  could  not,  how- 
ever, withhold  a  tribute  of  admiration  for  the  way  in 
which  Jemmy  and  his  coadjutors  held  their  audience ; 
neither  could  he  refrain  from  contrasting  the  whole- 
hearted service  rendered  by  the  church-members  here 
with  the  ultra-respectable  and,  in  fact,  condescending 
manner  in  which  his  own  deacons  moved  throughout 
the  services  at  his  chapel.  In  fact,  everything  he  saw 
impressed  him  with  its  freshness  and  spontaneity,  and 
from  thenceforward  he  wras  one  of  the  mission's  hearti- 
est friends  and  supporters. 

146 


Progress 


Behold,  then,  the  enlargement  of  the  Wren  Lane 
Mission  an  accomplished  fact,  all  in  train  for  a  really 
great  work  to  be  carried  on,  and  that,  too,  without  the 
subscription  of  a  penny  from  any  external  body  of 
Christians.  It  is  true  that  the  cost  of  the  whole  affair 
was  not  very  large,  measured  by  the  expenditure  usu- 
ally incurred  in  such  matters,  but  it  was  large  for  the 
people  who  had  carried  it  through,  and  every  penny 
subscribed  had  been  properly  spent  and  duly  accounted 
for.  And  when  at  last  the  long  day's  services  were 
brought  to  a  close  Jemmy  made  an  announcement  in 
a  broken  voice  from  the  platform.  He  was  overcome, 
because  what  he  was  saying  represented  the  summit  of 
his  ambition.  He  gave  out  among  other  notices  the 
momentous  one  that  on  Thursday  next  a  baptismal 
service  would  be  held,  at  which  twenty  believers  had 
signified  their  intention  of  being  immersed,  and  thus 
bearing  witness  to  the  faith  they  held,  an  announce- 
ment which  was  received  with  the  liveliest  satisfaction 
by  all  present,  but  a  description  of  which  must  be  de- 
ferred until  the  next  chapter. 


147 


CHAPTER  XV 

A    BAPTISMAL    SERVICE 

IT  had  always  been  one  of  Jemmy's  favourite  pieces 
of  eloquence,  and  one  that  never  failed  to  move  a 
crowd  either  to  laughter  or  tears — the  telling  of  the 
story  of  his  baptism.  I  am  not  going  to  attempt  to 
reproduce  that  story  here  properly  for  several  reasons, 
the  chief  one  being  that  without  his  inimitable  person- 
ality joined  to  the  relation  of  it,  most  of  its  interest 
would  be  lost  even  to  the  most  sympathetic  reader. 
But  in  its  bare  outlines  the  relation  of  the  facts  is  as 
follows :  After  Jemmy's  conversion  he  felt  a  great 
longing  to,  as  the  brethren  have  it,  follow  the  Lord 
in  baptism,  but  principally  owing  to  the  fact  that  at  his 
spiritual  birthplace  there  w?as  no  pool,  and  his  friends 
were  not  on  sufficiently  good  terms  with  any  of  the 
Baptist  chapels  near  to  borrow  one,  his  immersion 
was  again  and  again  deferred.  At  last  the  desire  of 
Jemmy  and  three  of  his  old  chums,  who  had  all  been 
brought  to  the  Lord  about  the  same  time,  for  the  per- 
formance of  the  rite  grew  so  intense  that  they  could  no 
longer  bear  the  delay.  Consequently,  a  meeting  was 
arranged  in  the  back  yard  of  a  disused  building  near 
Whitneld's  Tabernacle,  Tottenham  Court  Road,  where 
there  was  a  large  open  tank  of  water.  But  the  building 
itself  was  fast  closed  against  them,  so  that  a  dressing- 
room  was  not  to  be  obtained.  Moreover,  it  was  bit- 

148 


A   Baptismal   Service 

terly  cold.  No  matter.  Without  any  preparation  as 
far  as  suitable  garb  went,  but  just  as  he  "  stood  up- 
right in  'em,"  Jemmy  was  baptized,  and  on  emerging 
from  the  water  bolted  across  Tottenham  Court  Road, 
down  one  of  the  side  streets,  and  into  a  friend's  front 
basement  room  (one  of  the  two  he  rented  to  live  in), 
and  there,  standing  in  a  tub  so  as  not  to  turn  the  floor 
into  a  swamp,  he  changed  into  a  dry  suit.  "  An'/'  he 
would  say,  "  I  felt  all  of  a  sweat.  I  worn't  cold  a  bit, 
an'  'appy !  ah-h-h  !  "  There  he  always  had  to  pause,  as 
the  remembrance  of  that  ecstatic  time  overpowered 
him. 

But  in  spite  of  his  joyful  recollections  he  was  des- 
perately dissatisfied  at  the  idea  of  others  going  through 
the  same  hole-and-corner  business ;  neither  did  he  like 
appealing  to  Baptist  hospitality ;  and,  therefore,  now 
that  his  great  overmastering  desire  was  about  to  be 
fulfilled,  he  seemed  to  grow  visibly  dignified.  There 
were  still  difficulties  to  be  overcome.  In  the  first  place, 
the  accommodation  for  dressing  and  changing  was  ex- 
ceedingly scanty  ;  neither  was  there  much  likelihood  of 
the  converts  being  able  to  provide  their  own  special 
robes  for  the  occasion,  while  the  church  possessed 
none.  And  while  the  pool,  as  a  pool,  through  the  la- 
bours of  Jemmy  and  Woody,  was  all  that  could  be  de- 
sired, being  ten  feet  long  by  six  feet  wide  and  five 
feet  deep,  carefully  cemented  all  round,  and  provided 
with  a  good  set  of  steps  at  one  corner,  the  water  wasn't 
laid  on.  Worse  than  that,  after  the  filling  of  the  pool 
there  was  no  means  of  draining  it  away,  so  that  the  mere 
physical  labour  of  carrying  backward  and  forward 
over  a  thousand  large  pails  of  water-  was  sufficiently 
formidable  to  have  daunted  less  earnest  souls  than 
these.  Needless  to  say,  perhaps,  that  to  Jemmy  and 

149 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

Woody  the  fact  of  being  able  to  render  unto  the  Lord 
(as  they  believed)  some  bodily  service  was  entirely  de- 
lightful. Therefore,  the  service  being  fixed  for  a 
Thursday  evening,  on  the  Wednesday  at  about  7  P.  M., 
the  day's  work  being  well  over,  Jemmy,  Woody,  and 
Pug  made  their  way  to  the  Hall  provided  with  two 
buckets  and  some  cloths  for  wiping  up  the  slop  sure 
to  be  made.  Pug's  presence  was  avowedly  in  the  char- 
acter of  the  Indian  shabash-wallah,  an  indispensable  ad- 
junct to  all  work  carried  on  in  India.  He  contributes 
no  labour  himself,  but  wanders  round  among  the 
workers,  occasionally  exclaiming,  "  Shabash,  bhai !  " 
which  may  be  freely  interpreted  as  "  Courage,  broth- 
ers !"  or,  "  Cheer  up,  brothers !  "  or,  indeed,  any  other 
word  you  may  fancy  that  would  be  likely  to  revive  the 
flagging  spirits  of  a  gang  of  workers.  So  regular  is 
the  custom  that  it  is  almost  impossible  to  get  work 
done  without  a  "  shabash-wallah  "  or  "  cheering-up 
man." 

Now,  since  Pug  Maskery  had  fallen  into  the  painful 
grip  of  sciatica,  it  was  as  much  as  he  could  do  to  hobble 
about  with  the  aid  of  a  stick,  so  that  carrying  water 
was  out  of  the  question,  although  he  did  at  infinite 
pains,  forcing  many  groans  from  his  brave  old  heart, 
still  go  on  with  his  business  of  chimney  sweeping.  But 
that  was  really  necessary  for  his  living.  He  had  made 
a  business  contract  with  another  son,  a  godless,  reck- 
less man,  whereby  on  consideration  of  handing  over 
his  long  and  hardly  earned  connection  he  was  to  re- 
ceive a  stated  sum  per  week — enough  to  live  upon. 
Unfortunately,  he  soon  found  that  if  he  did  not  wish 
to  starve,  by  reason  of  his  share  remaining  unpaid,  it 
would  be  absolutely  necessary  for  him  to  attend  to 
business  as  usual,  having  no  means  of  coercing  his 

150 


A  Baptismal  Service 

son,  who  would  work  or  not,  and  pay  or  not,  as  it 
pleased  him. 

In  Christian  work  like  the  present,  however,  all 
Pug's  sympathies  were  engaged.  His  contributions 
in  money  were  only  limited  by  the  shallowness  of  his 
purse;  while  it  gave  him  unalloyed  pleasure  to  come 
on  such  occasions  and  sit  in  the  midst  of  the  workers, 
telling  them  story  after  story  from  his  rich  experience, 
the  moral  of  every  one  of  which  was  that  while  nine 
out  of  every  ten  men  were  sure  to  fail  you  at  a  critical 
moment,  if  you  put  your  whole  trust  in  God  you  were 
bound  to  be  all  right.  Your  very  mistakes  seemed  to 
be  the  right  thing  unconsciously  done.  And  while 
Jemmy  and  Woody  toiled  back  and  forth  to  the  ad- 
joining stable  bringing  water,  Pug  sat  and  "  sha- 
bashed  "  them,  so  that  when  relief  came  in  the  shape 
of  Brother  Salmon  and  Brother  Burn,  the  rigger,  both 
of  whom  turned  up  about  9.30,  quite  two-thirds  of 
the  work  was  done.  Then,  while  the  two  newcomers 
took  up  the  task  of  water-carrying,  Jemmy  and  Woody 
rushed  off  to  borrow  a  portable  copper  with  which  to 
temper  the  undoubted  chill  of  the  water,  lest  any  of  the 
converts,  not  being  upheld  by  sufficiently  forceful 
faith,  should  catch  a  severe  cold,  and  thereby  have  the 
edge  of  their  new  enthusiasm  dulled. 

So  it  came  about  that,  in  spite  of  the  zest  they 
brought  to  their  labours,  it  was  past  eleven  o'clock 
before  all  was  in  readiness  for  the  morrow's  ceremony. 
And  even  then  some  finishing  touches  remained  to  be 
put  to  what  Jemmy  grandiloquently  called  the  dress- 
ing-rooms, one  of  which  was  a  sort  of  triangular  cup- 
board into  which  four  persons  might  with  difficulty  be 
squeezed,  but  then  you  couldn't  shut  the  door.  This 
was  to  be  arranged  for  the  sisters.  The  newly  bap- 

«  151 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

tized  brethren  would  have  to  change  in  a  little  passage 
that  led  into  the  upper  part  of  the  Hall  by  a  side  door 
about  six  feet  long  by  two  feet  six  wide.  And  great 
care  would  be  necessary  in  using  this  place  for  dressing 
purposes,  since  the  partition  which  divided  it  from  the 
Hall  proper  was  so  thin  that  leaning  against  it  unaware 
the  neophyte  would,  breaking  through,  be  precipitated 
among  the  spectators  in  a  state  of  extreme  deshabille, 
and  cause  much  confusion,  not  to  say  scandalous  hilar- 
ity, which  might  be  fatal  to  the  solemnity  of  the  pro- 
ceedings. These  details  Brother  Salmon  promised  to 
attend  to  in  time,  and  then  an  adjournment  to  the 
neighbouring  stewed-eel  shop  was  suggested  by  Pug 
for  a  little  much-needed  refreshment  before  going 
home,  he  offering  at  the  same  time  to  treat  the  party, 
since  he  had  not  been  able  to  assist  them  at  their 
labours. 

Presently  behold  them,  then,  seated  at  the  plain  deal 
table  in  their  favourite  shop,  with  steaming  plate  of 
stewed  eels  and  mashed  potatoes  before  them  (not 
much  eel,  but  plenty  of  thick,  parsley-sprinkled  liquor), 
with  healthy  appetites  and  keen  appreciation  of  this, 
the  working-class  Londoners'  favourite  supper  dish. 
While  eating  it,  Pug  regaled  them  mentally  with  a 
reminiscence  of  his  first  chapel  (as  he  called  it).  At 
the  risk  of  stripping  himself  of  all  he  possessed,  he 
had  fitted  it  up  out  of  the  ruins  of  a  bankrupt  car- 
penter's workshop,  had  provided  seats,  platform,  pool, 
hymn-books,  and  all  minor  details.  Then,  to  his  sor- 
row, he  found  that  he  was  not  able  to  provide  all  the 
preaching  required  himself.  So,  in  an  evil  hour,  he 
was  induced  to  subsidize  (at  los.  weekly)  an  eloquent 
man  to  take  his  Sunday-evening  services.  Let  him 
give  the  sequel  in  his  own  words :  "  Brevren,  'e  was 

152 


A  Baptismal  Service 

the  finest  torker,  that  man,  'at  ever  I  yeard.  An'  'is 
knowledge  o'  Scripsher — well,  I  never  'erd  anyfink  like 
it.  'E  seemed  to  know  'is  Bible  frum  Genesis  to  Reve- 
lation by  'eart.  An'  I  thort,  pore  innercent  as  I  was 
(if  it'd  ben  a  'orse  deal  er  a  corsin'  match  I  wouldn't 
a  thort  so),  'at  I'd  a  got  a  bargin  such  as  no  missioner 
ever  'ad  before.  Well,  I  useter  lissen  to  'im  wiv  such 
pleasure,  I  carn't  tell  ye.  An'  gradually  I  let  'im  'ave 
more  an'  more  control  of  it,  seein'  as  'ow  'e  could  do 
it  so  much  better  'n  me,  w'ile  I  went  to  uvver  places 
w'ere  I  was  invited  to  speak.  I'd  oughter  known — only 
there's  some  kinds  er  knowin'  ye  carn't  get  wivout 
'sperience — I'd  oughter  known  better  'n  ter  leave  me 
own  gardin  an'  go  'elpin'  ter  cultivate  uvver  people's. 
This  kinder  thing  went  on  fer  abaht  six  monfs,  until 
one  day  w'en  I  was  a-goin'  froo  the  accounts  wiv  'im, 
'e  ses,  sorter  bashful  like, '  Mister  Maskery  '  ('e'd  alwus 
called  me  bruvver  before),  '  Mr.  Maskery,'  ses  'e,  '  I 
got  somefin'  t'  say  t'  ye.'  '  Say  away,  ole  man,'  ses  I 
quite  cheerful,  little  finkin'  wot  wos  comin'.  '  Well,' 
'e  ses,  '  th'  congregation  'ere  seems  t'  think  'at  yore 
not  quite  orthydox  on  several  p'ints  of  doctrine,  an' 
besides,  they've  come  to  th'  conclushion  'at  you  ant 
a-doin'  the  right  thing  by  'em.  They're  mos'ly  of 
opinion  'at  yore  a-goin'  abaht  too  much  an'  neglecktin' 
ther  sperritooal  interests.'  Then,  brevren,  I  see  it  all 
in  a  minit.  My  ole  bisness  'sperience  come  in 
straight,  an'  I  'eld  up  me  'and  ter  stop  'im,  'cause  he 
was  goin'  t'  say  some  more.  '  'Old  on,'  ses  I,  '  wos 
they  a-perposin'  t'  make  you  the  parstor  of  this  'ere 
chapel  'n'  shunt  me?  '  'E  didn't  arnser  fur  a  minit,  but 
I  waited  till  'e  pulls  'isself  tergevver  an'  ses :  '  Well,  I 
don'  quite  like  yore  way  o'  putten'  it,  Mr.  Maskery,  but 
I  mus'  say  thet's  abaht  wot  it  comes  ter,'  ses  'e.  '  Har, 

153 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

I  thort  as  much,'  ses  I.  '  Well,  looky  'ere,  Mr.  Brahn, 
I'm  a  child  of  Gord  nah,  an'  so  I  carn't  take  yer  be  the 
neck  an'  fling  yer  froo  that  winder,  as  me  fingers  itch 
ter  do,  but  fur  Gord's  sake  don'  you  go  'n'  temp'  me 
too  fur.  Nah  lissen.  I  ben  pretty  sleepy,  I  know, 
but  I'm  wide  awak'  nah.  I'm  payin'  fur  th'  'ole  o'  this 
show  because  I  luv  Gord  'n'  I  want  t'  do  for  uvvers 
wot  uvvers  's  done  fur  me.  'N'  if  I  didn't  see  wot  I 
do  see,  'at  yore  a  mean  sneak  wot  wants  ter  get  some- 
fin'  aht  o'  me  an'  somefin'  aht  o'  the  people,  'n'  then 
w'en  you've  got  all  you  kin,  do  a  guy  somewheres  else 
'n'  begin  agen,  I'd  give  the  'ole  thing  up  an'  feel  'at  I 
was  on'y  doin'  wot  wos  right  an'  'onest  an'  true.  But 
seein'  wot  I  do  see,  I  tell  yer  wot  I'm  a-goin'  t'  do — 
I'm  a-goin'  t'  arsk  you  t'  come  dahn  t'  th'  chapel  on 
Sunday  night.  I'll  git  a  lot  er  bills  aht  so  's  \ve  can 
'ave  a  full  'ouse,  an'  then  I'll  put  th'  matter  afore  th' 
people.  An'  if  they  wants  ter  git  rid  o'  me  an'  'ave 
you — all  right,  they're  welcome ;  but  you  an'  them  '11 
'ave  ter  give  me  substanshul  security  fur  repayment  of 
all  I've  a-laid  aht  on  th'  chapel.'  'E  didn't  say  any  more. 
Just  walked  orf,  an'  wen  Sunday  night  come  'e  didn't 
show  up,  an'  in  abaht  five  minits  I  found  'at  th'  people 
was  all  sound  enough.  It  was  'im  as  was  unsound. 
Wy,  'e  was  a  Shaker,  er  a  Mormon,  or  somefin'  o'  that 
kind,  or  at  least  'e'd  got  a  thin  varnish  o'  some  kind  of 
tommy  rot  on  top  of  a  solid  foundation  o'  lookin'  arter 
Number  I.  An'  'e'd  faked  up  th'  'counts,  too,  so  'at 
'is  ten  bob  a  week  come  aht  nearer  firty  than  ten.  But 
I  thenked  Gord  I'd  got  orf  as  cheap  as  I  did,  an'  I 
thenked  Gord  a  good  menny  times  'at  sech  a  wolf  in 
sheep's  clovin'  'adn't  been  able  t'  rooin  the  work  I'd 
giv  not  only  me  money  to,  but  me  'art's  blood  almost." 
"  Yes,  brother,"  said  Brother  Salmon,  "  it  was  ter- 

154 


A  Baptismal  Service 

rible.  I  orfen  feel  as  if  we  don't  think  half  enough 
about  the  way  in  which  God  keeps  us  from  the  harm 
the  devil's  always  awaitin'  to  do  us  in  them  kind  o' 
ways.  It's  fairly  easy  to  go  on  in  the  straight  way  o' 
righteousness  when  once  he's  set  our  feet  in  it,  but 
when  you  think  of  all  the  pitfalls  there  is  in  our  own 
work  for  him,  not  only  dug  by  wolves  in  sheep's 
clothin',  but  by  our  own  sincere  friends,  our  families, 
an'  even  ourselves,  it  do  seem  wonderful  'at  ever  we  see 
any  results  from  our  work  at  all.  But  we  do,  bless 
God,  we  do."  (Hearty  "  Amens  "  from  the  others  con- 
siderably disconcerting  the  shopkeeper.)  "  I  do  feel 
for  that  poor  wretch,  though ;  he  must  have  been  very 
near  the  kingdom  once.  Did  you  ever  hear,  Brother 
Maskery  ?  " 

"  Oh,  yers,"  chimed  in  Jemmy.  "  'E  'card  all  right. 
Mr.  Brahn  got  'auled  up  fur  obtainin'  money  an'  goods 
under  false  pretences,  an'  farver  went  to  try  an'  git  him 
orf.  He  wasn't  able  to  do  that  quite,  although  'e  cer- 
tinkly  did  get  'is  sentence  made  less  than  it  would  'a' 
ben.  Then  farver  goes  an'  waits  for  'im  wen  'e's 
a-comin'  aht,  buys  'im  some  close,  an'  gets  'im  a 
chance  to  go  aht  ter  Souf  Ameriky,  long  of  an  old  pal 
of  'is  wot  wos  skipper  of  a  little  bark.  An'  'e  ain't  'crd 
tell  on  'im  sence,  but  I  know  'e's  a-'opin'  an'  beleevin* 
'at  'e's  got  saved  an'  kep'.  'Tain't  likely  as  farver'd 
ever  give  anybody  up,  is  it,  's  long  's  they're  alive? 
But  I  say,  we'd  better  be  orf.  My  wife  '11  be  that  cross 
— she'll  think  I  forgot  all  about  'er." 

Jemmy's  alarm  was  very  real,  and  as  he  sprang 
to  his  feet  all  the  others  followed  his  example  and 
hastened  to  be  gone,  with  the  exception  of  Pug,  whose 
sciatica  made  him  slow  of  gait.  Moreover,  as  he  paid 
the  modest  eighteen  pence  for  their  repast  he  took  the 

155 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

opportunity  of  saying  a  word  in  season  to  the  shop- 
keeper, a  man  whom  he  had  known  for  years  as  an 
inoffensive,  respectable  citizen  who  paid  his  way,  did 
his  duty  as  far  as  could  be  seen,  never  was  known  to 
refuse  a  morsel  of  food  to  the  hungry  ones  who  begged 
for  it,  but  in  religious  matters  was  quite  an  unknown 
quantity.  After  a  little  preliminary  fencing  Pug 
tackled  him  boldly  as  to  why  he,  who  already  appar- 
ently possessed  all  the  attributes  a  Christian  should 
have,  had  not  cast  in  his  lot  with  God's  people  openly. 
To  Pug's  amazement  he  found  that  this  quiet,  self- 
respecting  man  had  never  been  in  a  place  of  worship 
in  his  life,  or  attended  any  religious  meetings  of  any 
kind  whatever.  His  father  had  been  a  Christian  of 
great  energy  and  independence  of  thought,  who,  after 
having  been  driven  out  of  several  religious  bodies 
through  jealousy  of  his  powers,  had  been  utterly  ruined 
by  the  defalcations  of  a  man  high  in  office  in  a  great 
Nonconformist  church.  This  dreadful  experience 
caused  him  to  withdraw  himself  from  Christian  work 
altogether,  and  until  the  time  of  his  death,  which  took 
place  shortly  after,  his  lips  were  sealed  upon  the  sub- 
ject. But  just  before  he  died  he  said  to  his  eldest  son, 
then  an  excellent  lad  of  fifteen :  "  Peter,  my  lad,  trust 
Christ,  but  distrust  people  who  call  themselves  Chris- 
tians. Worship  God  with  your  whole  heart,  but  re- 
member that  man,  whatever  his  professions  may  be,  is 
a  deceitful  being,  and  keep  your  eye  upon  him,  espe- 
cially if  he  holds  office  in  a  church." 

The  outcome  of  this  terrible  advice,  so  utterly 
wrong  in  its  conclusions,  yet,  alas !  so  awfully  natural 
under  the  circumstances,  was  as  we  have  seen.  Before 
this  statement  poor  old  Pug  retired  discomfited,  beg- 
ging, however,  that  he  might  return  to  the  subject  on 

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A  Baptismal  Service 

some  future  occasion,  and  bidding  the  shopkeeper 
good-night  with  the  utmost  heartiness,  making  the 
simple  words  sound  almost  like  a  benediction. 

News  of  the  proposed  ceremony  had  spread 
throughout  the  neighbourhood  with  great  thorough- 
ness, and  the  result  was  a  state  of  things  entirely  un- 
foreseen by  any  of  the  brethren.  When  Jemmy  and 
Brother  Salmon  arrived  at  4  P.  M.  to  heat  the  water  for 
the  pool,  the  alley  leading  up  to  the  Hall  was  entirely 
deserted;  indeed,  it  looked  as  if  no  one  ever  came 
there.  But  when  at  seven  o'clock,  thoroughly  tired, 
the  two  workers  opened  the  door  to  leave,  and  snatch 
a  hurried  meal,  they  found  the  narrow  passage  packed 
with  eagerly  waiting  folk,  who,  as  soon  as  they  saw  the 
pair,  clamoured  for  admission,  although  the  time  for 
commencing  the  ceremony  was  fixed  at  eight  o'clock. 
Momentarily  bewildered,  Jemmy  stammered  out  an 
almost  incoherent  appeal  to  the  people  to  be  patient. 
And  as  they  listened  to  him  quietly  enough  he  gathered 
confidence,  and  went  on  to  explain  more  lucidly  that 
the  preparations  were  not  yet  complete;  neither  wTere 
there  any  helpers  present  yet  for  the  purpose  of  keep- 
ing order.  With  a  docility  that  surprised  him  they 
raised  no  objection,  two  or  three  would-be  malcontents 
being  speedily  silenced,  and  allowed  him  and  his  coad- 
jutor to  pass  out  of  the  alley  on  their  way  home. 

When  they  arrived  they  were  almost  too  excited  to 
eat  or  drink,  the  possibilities  of  the  evening  seeming  so 
tremendous  to  them.  Poor  Jemmy  kept  softly  repeat- 
ing to  himself,  "  More  than  ye  c'n  arsk  'r  even  think. 
Bless  th'  Lord,  so  it  is,  so  it  is."  And  after  snatching 
a  few  hurried  mouthfuls  he  started  off  again,  pursued 
by  his  eldest  boy  with  a  parcel.  It  contained  a  bap- 
tismal waterproof  costume  which  he  had  obtained  the 

157 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

loan  of  from  a  friend  who  was  pastor  of  a  small  Bap- 
tist congregation  in  the  north  of  London.  And  al- 
though it  is  certain  that  the  lack  of  it  would  not  have 
hindered  him  one  moment  from  going  on  with  the 
ceremony,  yet  its  possession  would  doubtless  add 
greatly  to  his  comfort.  Tucking  the  parcel  under  his 
arm,  he  hurried  off  again,  finding  when  he  arrived  at 
the  entrance  to  the  alley  that  it  was  a  matter  of  the 
greatest  difficulty  to  force  his  way  in  through  the 
densely  packed  people.  He  was  overjoyed  to  find, 
though,  that  Captain  Stevens,  Brothers  Jimson,  Burn, 
and  Harrop  were  there  awaiting  him,  for  by  their  aid 
he  felt  well  able  to  maintain  order.  All  the  candidates 
for  baptism  had  arrived  also.  These  he  managed  to 
get  in  first,  despatching  the  sisters  to  their  cupboard 
under  the  tender  guardianship  of  Sister  Salmon  to 
prepare,  and  the  brothers  to  their  passage,  with  strict 
injunctions  to  mind  and  not  lean  against  the  partition. 
Then,  admitting  the  impatient  congregation,  he  and 
his  helpers  had  their  hands  as  full  as  they  could  well 
hold  for  ten  minutes  or  so  getting  the  people  into  their 
places.  When  at  last  all  that  the  Hall  would  hold  were 
inside,  it  was  found  that  quite  half  as  many  again  were 
shut  out,  and  it  was  no  easy  task  to  pacify  them.  But 
it  was  accomplished  at  last,  the  doors  were  closed  and 
the  windows  all  opened,  and  Jemmy,  every  fibre  quiv- 
ering with  almost  uncontrollable  excitement,  gave  out 
the  grand  old  hymn,  O  God,  our  Help  in  Ages  Past,  to 
the  well-known  tune,  St.  Ann's. 

It  was  evident  at  once  that,  as  revivalists  say,  there 
was  "  power  "  in  the  meeting,  for  a  casual  observer 
looking  from  the  platform  would  have  seen  many 
rough  faces,  foreign  usually  to  all  the  softer  emotions, 
working  in  their  efforts  at  restraint  And  when  the 

I58 


A  Baptismal  Service 

song  ceased  and  old  Pug,  mounting  the  platform, 
spread  out  his  knotted,  grimy  hands,  and  said  brok- 
enly, "  Let's  all  pray,"  there  was  a  distinctly  visible 
wave  of  feeling  which  swept  from  end  to  end  of  the 
closely  packed  audience.  His  prayer  was  a  prayer 
indeed;  no  sermonette,  but  a  simple,  fervent  appeal 
to  the  God  he  knew  so  well  to  bless  the  famishing  ones 
gathered  there  with  his  presence  and  bring  them  to  a 
real  conscious  acquaintanceship  with  himself.  As  soon 
as  he  had  finished,  another  hymn  was  given  out,  and 
Jemmy,  after  a  hurried  conference  with  his  helpers, 
retired  into  the  brethren's  passage,  from  which  he 
presently  emerged,  robed  in  what  appeared  to  be  a 
diving-dress  as  far  as  the  waist,  but  from  that  upward 
had  the  full  sleeves  and  bands  of  the  ancient  clerical 
garb,  only  in  black  waterproof.  Giggles,  sternly 
s-s-sh'd  down,  were  heard  here  and  there,  and  no  won- 
der, for  Jemmy  was  really  a  more  mirth-provoking 
figure  than  one  often  sees  in  a  lifetime.  His  very  self- 
consciousness  helped  the  hilarity,  so  that  even  those 
most  impressed  with  the  solemnity  of  the  occasion  were 
hard  put  to  it  to  keep  their  countenances. 

Advancing  to  the  brink  of  the  pool,  with  his  friends 
close  at  hand,  Jemmy  held  up  one  hand  and  said : 
"  Dear  friends,  it's  easy  to  laugh,  'specially  w'en  we 
won't  think.  You  can't  'ardly  'elp  larfin'  at  me,  I  know, 
'n'  I  don't  feel  quite  comf'ble  meself.  But  if  you'll  re- 
member wot  we're  a-goin'  t'  do,  that  all  them  that's 
a-goin'  dahn  inter  this  water  is  professin'  ter  be  buried 
wiv  Christ — that  is,  they're  henceforf  dead  t'  sin — an' 
as  they  come  up  that  they're  risen  wiv  'im  to  a  life  of 
righteousness,  'oliness,  an'  'appiness,  I'm  shore  you 
won't  feel  inclined  ter  laugh  any  more  'n  you  would 
at  the  funeral  of  yer  muvver.  Please,  please  don't 

159 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

forget  'at  if  this  is  on'y  a  altered  cow-shed,  Jesus  th' 
King  o'  Glory  was  borned  in  one,  an'  among  the  hani- 
mals,  too.  Bless  'im,  'e's  'ere  nah;  may  'e  give  y'  all 
th'  spirit  of  rev'rence  an'  godly  fear." 

All  was  now  quite  silent.  The  first  candidate,  the 
waitress  from  the  coffee-shop,  came  forward  neatly 
attired  in  a  white  robe,  pale  as  chalk,  and  visibly  shak- 
ing. Jemmy  descended  into  the  pool  and  helped  her 
down  the  ladder.  Then,  as  soon  as  she  had  recovered 
the  breath  which  the  first  chilly  touch  of  the  water 
had  taken  away,  Jemmy,  pronouncing  the  solemn 
words  which  mean  so  much  to  the  adult  being  bap- 
tized, but  which  the  sponsors  of  the  infant  often  hear 
quite  unmoved,  by  a  dexterous  movement  immersed 
her  entirely,  and  before  she  quite  realized  what  had 
happened  she  was  being  assisted  up  the  ladder  neatly 
covered,  and  was  hurried  out  of  sight  to  change  her 
garb.  And  so  the  whole  ceremony  proceeded  without 
a  hitch,  although  the  anxiety  of  those  behind  to  see 
was  so  great  that  at  times  it  appeared  as  if  there  would 
be  trouble.  It  was  promptly  prevented  by  Captain 
Stevens,  who  was  in  his  element ;  and,  indeed,  so  well 
was  order  kept  that  although  one  woman  fainted  in 
the  pool,  no  one  but  those  handling  her  knew  of  it. 

And  so  the  whole  great  business  passed  off  satis- 
factorily and  in  utmost  decency  and  order,  until  in 
an  evil  moment  Jemmy  essayed  to  ascend  the  ladder. 
As  soon  as  he  did  so  he  found  that  by  some  unsus- 
pected leak  his  waterproof  dress  had  become  quite 
filled,  and  was  so  weighty  that  he  could  by  no  means 
lift  himself  out  of  the  water.  It  did  not  occur  to  him 
to  slip  it  off  or  to  remain  where  he  was  until  the 
audience  had  gone,  but,  asking  for  assistance,  he  was 
forcibly  dragged  up  the  ladder  and  stood  on  the  brink 

160 


A   Baptismal  Service 

of  the  pool,  looking  like  a  gigantic  pair  of  sausages  as 
to  his  lower  limbs.  Human  nature  could  bear  no  more, 
and  the  meeting  broke  up  in  shouts  of  uncontrollable 
laughter.  It  was  a  conclusive  proof  that  the  saintli- 
est  of  men  need  a  little  common  sense  and  prudence 
in  the  conduct  of  Christian  work,  or  they  may  defeat 
their  own  ends. 


161 


CHAPTER  XVI 

GATHERING    CLOUDS 

WHO  shall  assess  the  evil  consequences  which  often 
follow  upon  what  we  would  fain  consider  our  best- 
intentioned  acts?  There  can  be  no  doubt  but  that 
Jemmy  was  as  sincere  in  his  desire  to  do  good  as  could 
possibly  be,  and  yet  it  is  undeniable  also  that  there 
was  a  spice  of  peculiar  ambition  in  his  eager  desire 
to  hold  a  baptismal  service.  A  little,  maybe,  of  the 
old  hankering  after  spiritual  power  over  one's  fellows 
that  has  always  had  such  a  fascination  for  mankind. 
He  would  indignantly  and  with  all  sincerity  have  de- 
nied any  idea  whatever  of  making  himself  a  priest,  or 
even  a  priestling,  which  would  only  have  proved  that 
the  best  of  men  may  successfully  deceive  themselves. 
However,  the  net  result  of  this  service  of  his,  pushed 
forward  with  undue  haste,  and  consequently  entered 
upon  without  that  careful  preparation  which  was  due 
to  its  importance,  was  that  not  only  was  a  grand  oppor- 
tunity for  doing  good  missed,  but  a  great  amount  of 
damage  done  to  the  cause  which  he  had  most  at 
heart. 

For  as  the  closely  packed  congregation  dispersed, 
such  remarks  as  the  following  were  freely  bandied 
about :  "  Don't  'e  fancy  hisself,  neither?  Sticking  'isself 
up  ter  be  a  kind  er  bishop — the  likes  of  'im!  Better 
learn  'is  own  bisness  fust  afore  he  takes  on  such  a  job 

162 


Gathering  Clouds 


as  that  agen.  I  calls  it  downright  blarsphemous,  I  do, 
fur  a  feller  like  'im  t'  go  an'  make  a  mockery  of  a  holy 
ceremunny  such  as  that."  This  last  remark  came  with 
peculiar  force  and  appropriateness  from  the  individual 
making  it — a  sodden  creature  who  lived  upon  his  wife's 
earnings  at  the  wash-tub,  and  of  whom  it  was  univer- 
sally said  that  he  had  never  done  a  day's  work  in  his 
life,  or  spoken  a  good  word  of  anybody  except  in  the 
hope  of  getting  beer  from  them.  But  still,  while  no 
man  may  prevent  a  scoffer  from  ridiculing  sacred 
things,  it  should  be  the  most  jealous  care  of  all  who 
serve  the  Lord  to  refrain  from  doing  anything  that 
can  bring  their  service  into  contempt.  Poor  old  Pug 
was  much  cast  down  when  the  crowd  had  gone, 
and  the  few  "  elders  "  of  the  "  church  "  were  discuss- 
ing the  evening's  proceedings ;  he  was  moved  to 
tears  over  the  great  opportunity  lost  and  the  absurd 
figure  cut  by  his  son  at  so  critical  a  time.  He  said : 
"  I  looked  thet  we  sh'd  'old  a  service  o'  prise  arter 
this  meetin',  and  'stid  o'  that  we  must,  yuss,  we 
must,  'old  a  service  o'  penitence.  There's  somethin' 
wrong  somewheres.  We  ain't  all  right  wiv  Gord, 
I'm  shore,  'r  we  shouldn't  a  ben  let  go  as  wrong  as 
we  'ave." 

Then,  suddenly,  to  the  unmitigated  astonishment 
of  everybody  present  but  himself,  Jimson  stepped  for- 
ward, his  face  fiery  red,  and  stammered  out :  "  Looky 
'ere,  Mr.  Maskery,  I've  'ad  enough  o'  yore  snackin' 
an'  'intin'  at  me,  an'  I  ain't  a-goin'  t'  stand  it  no  longer. 
If  you've  got  anythin'  agin'  me,  w'y  don't  yer  say  it  out 
an'  'ave  done  wiv  it?  I'm  as  good  a  man  as  you  are, 
an'  I  tell  yer  straight  I  don't  like  th'  way  things  'as  ben 
a-goin'  on  'ere  fur  some  time.  I  ben  in  the  mission 
four  or  five  years  now,  an'  up  till  a  little  while  ago  I  'ad 

163 


The  Apostles  of  the   Southeast 

my  share  of  the  work.  I  took  my  part  in  wotever  was 
goin',  an'  paid  my  bit  tords  everythink  like  a  man,  an' 
that's  more  'n  you  can  say,  Mr.  Jemmy  Maskery,  an' 
well  you  knows  it.  Many  and  many  a  time  we've  'ad 
ter  make  iip  wot  was  short  through  you  not  bein'  able 
to  pay  your  share.  An'  then,  w'en  your  chum  comes 
along,  a  man  like  me  'as  t'  get  out  of  'is  way ;  stan' 
back  an'  'old  my  peace,  although  I  fink  I  'as  quite  as 
much  right  an'  asperience  an' — an'  goodness,  too,  if  it 
comes  ter  that,  as  ever  'e  'ad,  or  you,  either,  fur  the 
matter  o'  that." 

The  speaker,  having  now  apparently  accomplished 
his  object  of  working  himself  up  into  a  fury,  paused 
for  breath,  and  glared  around  into  the  blank  astonish- 
ment depicted  on  the  faces  he  saw.  For  a  minute  there 
was  an  uneasy,  surcharged  silence.  Then  Pug  spoke, 
slowly,  thoughtfully,  as  one  who  felt  that  upon  him 
rested  great  responsibilities :  "  Joe,  my  lad,  'ow  fur 
I'm  ter  blame  fur  wot  you've  jest  said  I  don't  know.  I 
only  know  this :  that  if  I've  said  anythin',  or  done 
anythin',  or  even  thought  anythin'  wrong  tords  you  or 
any  bruvver  in  this  gavring,  I  arsks  yore  pardin  'umbly 
as  I  arsks  Cord's  pardin,  too.  I  can  say,  though,  'on- 
est  an'  true,  'at  I  never  meant  any  'arm.  An'  if  I  was 
finkin'  of  anybody  in  peticler  w'en  I  spoke  as  I  did 
it  wos  my  son  Jemmy.  'Corse  I  know  'im,  p'raps,  bet- 
ter 'n  any  of  yer.  I  knows  'at  e's  alwus  a-rushin'  at 
fings  like  a  bull  at  a  gate,  an'  'e  don't  often  stop  ter  fink 
wot's  a-goin'  ter  'appen  w'en  'e's  'ad  'is  way.  But, 
in  the  sight  of  Cord,  my  only  feelin'  was  'at  we'd 
missed  a  grand  opportunity,  th'  henemy  'ad  'ad  'ca- 
sion  ter  blarspheme,  an'  th'  cause  we're  all  a-wishin' 
to  see  go  forward  'as  ben  put  back.  An'  I  felt  'at 
p'raps  th'  fault  was  in  ourselves  somewheres.  Joe, 

164 


Gathering  Clouds 


Jemmy,  and  brevren,  if  I've  said  wot  I  oughtn't  to 
a-said,  forgive  me ;  I  didn't  mean  no  'arm." 

Upon  Jemmy  the  effect  of  his  father's  appeal  was 
what  might  have  been  expected.  He  gazed,  as  if  con- 
science-smitten, around  the  Hall,  a  helpless,  pathetic, 
appealing  look,  as  if  conscious  of  wrong-doing,  yet  un- 
able to  realize  where  and  in  what  way  he  had  done 
what  he  should  not.  For  a  time  no  one  spoke,  and 
when  at  last  the  uneasy  silence  was  broken  it  was  by 
the  newly  baptized  Bill  Harrop.  Looking  straight  at 
Jimson,  he  said :  "  Brevren,  I'm  only  a  kid  among  yer, 
but  it  seems  ter  me  as  if  I  oughter  say  somefin'.  An' 
wot  I  want  ter  say  is  this — 'at  I  fink  arter  wot  Gord's 
let  ye  do  fur  me  an'  lots  of  uvvers,  I  carn't  under- 
stand any  little  fing  like  this  'ere  upsettin'  of  yer.  If 
Bruvver  Jimson's  ben  left  aht  in  the  cold,  or  finks  'e 
'as,  why,  let's  all  beg  'is  pardon  an'  tell  'im  'e  sha'n't 
'ave  no  cause  ter  compline  any  more.  I'm  shore  no- 
body intended  ter  slight  'im,  an' " 

But  here  Jimson  burst  in  with :  "  Looky  'ere,  Broth- 
er Harrop,  once  fer  all,  don't  you  think  I  want  any  pat- 
ternisin'  from  you,  'cause  I  don't.  I  wasn't  a-torkin'  t' 
you,  any'ow,  and  I  don't  know  wot  ye  mean  by  address- 
in'  yore  remarks  to  me.  I  was  gittin'  sick  o'  th'  'ole 
business  afore,  an'  nah  you  come  a-pattin'  me  on  the 
back — that  feeds  me  up,  an'  I'm  orf."  With  that  he 
strode  swiftly  towards  the  door,  disregarding  entirely 
the  expostulatory  calls  of  his  friends,  and  "was  gone. 

Now,  to  men  of  the  world  Jimson's  behaviour 
would  have  been  perfectly  explicable.  They  would 
have  said  that  he  was  jealous,  feeling  his  own  want  of 
capacity  to  do  the  work  that  was  being  done,  and  yet 
bitterly  resentful  of  the  ability  of  others  who,  coming 
later  into  the  "  church  "  than  he,  had  naturally  taken 

165 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

at  once  a  higher  place.  There  are  many  such  as  he 
in  both  Nonconformist  and  Established  churches.  As 
long  as  they  hold  some  prominent  position,  occupy 
some  place  that  gratifies  their  self-love,  they  are,  if  not 
content,  not  too  discontented.  But  let  any  member  of 
the  same  church,  by  any  exhibition  of  useful  qualities 
whatever,  come  to  the  front,  and  immediately  whispers 
of  disaffection,  slanderous,  disparaging  rumours,  and 
sometimes  positively  scandalous  insinuations,  will  be- 
gin to  crop  up  concerning  the  useful  member.  If  these 
are  traced  to  their  source,  a  matter  requiring  much 
patience  and  perseverance,  they  will  invariably  be 
found  to  emanate  from  some  such  individual  as  I  have 
sketched.  Alas !  it  is  almost  always  impossible  to  undo 
the  harm  thus  done ;  it  has  often  been  a  cancer  eating 
out  the  very  life  of  a  most  useful  and  flourishing 
church.  It  should  be  dealt  with  in  the  same  way  as 
cancer — the  knife  should  be  used  unsparingly.  This 
kind  of  people  is  a  curse  to  society  generally,  but 
within  the  church  they  are  a  greater  curse  than  any- 
where else.  They  are  the  devil's  most  potent  agents. 
In  the  world  it  is  sometimes  seen  that  one  man  will 
pursue  another  with  most  malevolent  designs;  will 
strive  in  every  dark  and  detestable  way  to  do  him  harm, 
not  because  of  any  evil  the  object  of  his  hatred  has 
done  him,  but  because  of  envy — that  hateful  thing  that 
would,  if  it  could  gain  an  entrance  there,  make  a  hell 
of  heaven.  I  speak  feelingly,  because  I  have  most  inti- 
mate knowledge  of  a  man,  highly  gifted,  industrious, 
and  frugal,  who,  with  splendid  opportunities  of  mak- 
ing a  great  name,  and  every  prospect  before  him  of 
being  of  immense  service  to  his  kind,  has  so  allowed 
himself  to  become  possessed  of  this  demon  of  envy 
that  he  has  alienated  almost  every  friend  he  ever  had, 

166 


Gathering  Clouds 


has  lost  every  jot  of  the  influence  he  once  wielded, 
and  is  now  almost  at  the  same  point  as  when  he  began 
his  career,  because  his  creed  is  hatred,  malice,  and 
all  uncharitableness  bound  together  by  a  consuming 
envy  of  any  and  everybody  who  does  anything  suc- 
cessfully. But  he,  at  least,  makes  no  profession  of  re- 
ligion. He  is,  of  course,  not  less  of  a  hypocrite  for  that, 
because  he  will  often  pose  as  an  advocate  of  causes  for 
which  he  cares  not  the  snapping  of  his  fingers,  his  only 
object  being  the  damage  he  may  possibly  do  to  some 
man  who  has  taken  strong  views  upon  the  subject. 

However,  I  must  not  longer  dwell  upon  this  side 
of  the  question,  especially  when  the  importance  of  the 
Christian  side  is  so  manifest.  Let  me,  then,  say  boldly, 
that  wherever  in  church  work  an  envious  man  is  found 
spreading  malicious  reports  about  his  co-workers, 
steps  should  at  once  be  taken  to  get  rid  of  him  if  he 
be  found,  as  he  most  probably  will  be,  impenitent  or 
apparently  quite  unaware  of  the  evil  he  is  doing.  And 
ministers  or  leaders  of  missions  should  never  relax 
their  efforts  to  inculcate  the  pre-eminent  necessity  for 
a  spirit  of  unity  among  all  engaged  in  the  work  of  the 
gathering.  To  put  it  on  the  lowest  ground  imaginable 
and  apart  altogether  from  its  ethical  aspect,  such  a 
state  of  things  is  unbusinesslike.  It  is  a  sheer  waste 
of  energy.  The  business  of  the  church  is  to  fight 
against  evil  in  all  shapes  and  forms;  but  if  in  the 
church's  heart  there  exists  a  canker-worm  so  virulent 
as  this  one  of  envy,  what  possible  good  results  can  be 
hoped  for?  How  can  the  pastor  preach  the  sweet  doc- 
trines of  brotherly  love,  the  unity  of  the  Spirit,  and  the 
bond  of  peace,  when  in  his  heart  he  knows  that  in 
the  arcanum  of  his  church  there  are  brethren  and  sis- 
ters ready  to  bite  and  devour  one  another  ?  The  only 
12  167 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

answer  is,  that  if  he  does  continue  to  do  so,  it  must  be 
with  a  sense  of  hypocrisy  and  unreality  about  him  that 
cannot  fail  to  have  a  dreadfully  demoralizing  influ- 
ence upon  his  own  soul,  something  like  that  experi- 
enced by  a  man  who,  drinking  in  secret,  is  at  the  same 
time  an  apparently  ardent  advocate  of  the  cause  of  total 
abstinence. 

Jimson's  sudden  exit  seemed  to  lift  the  embargo 
laid  upon  Jemmy's  tongue.  He  sighed  heavily  and 
said :  "  Well,  farver  an'  brevren,  we  must  go  'ome. 
I'm  a-goin'  'ome  wiv  a  'eavy  'eart,  not  'at  I  c'n  quite 
understand  wot  I've  done  wrong.  But  after  wot  farver 
'as  said,  an'  the  way  Bruvver  Jimson  left  erse,  I  canit 
feel  'appy.  No  matter ;  my  'eart  don't  condemn  me,  an' 
if  it  did  I  sh'd  arst  pardon  an'  be  fergiven  as  I've  ben 
so  many  times.  Good-night,  an'  God  bless  all  of  ye." 
A  general  handshaking  and  series  of  good-nights  fol- 
lowed, and  in  five  minutes  all  had  separated  and  gone 
to  their  several  homes. 

The  next  Saturday  evening  prayer-meeting  was 
marked  by  a  most  unusual  incident.  As  a  rule,  no  one 
ever  came  to  that  meeting  save  the  members  of  the 
mission,  but  on  this  occasion  a  man  was  present  who 
made  all  the  members  feel  uneasy.  He  was  a  coster- 
monger  if  he  was  anything,  but  neither  as  a  street 
tradesman  nor  a  general  labourer  was  he  ever  a  regular 
worker.  Nowadays  he  would  be  called  a  Hooligan, 
but  then  the  only  term  that  could  be  applied  to  him 
with  any  sense  of  propriety  was  that  of  "  rough."  He 
was  undoubtedly  rough,  and  wherever  any  trouble 
was  afoot  it  was  almost  certain  that  Jem  Paterson 
would  be  found  in  the  midst  of  it.  He  was  distinctly 
one  of  the  dangerous  classes  of  whom,  alas !  there  are 
so  many  in  our  great  towns,  bred  in  the  foulness  of 

1 68 


Gathering  Clouds 


the  slums,  and  without  any  more  sense  of  their  duty 
towards  their  neighbour  than  animals,  of  whom  they 
resemble  only  the  fiercest  types.  He  had  been  at  the 
baptismal  service,  and  was  then  "  spotted  "  by  Brother 
Salmon,  who  for  a  moment  felt  full  of  fear  lest  he 
should  have  come  there  to  create  a  disturbance,  but 
was  consoled  when  he  found  that  as  the  service  pro- 
ceeded Paterson  sat  quite  still,  apparently  impressed 
by  what  was  going  on. 

When,  however,  he  put  in  an  appearance  on  the 
Saturday  evening  none  of  the  members  knew  quite 
what  to  make  of  it.  For,  in  common  with  most  Chris- 
tian workers,  their  faith  was  not  very  strong,  and  when 
results  of  their  preaching  and  practising  manifested 
themselves,  these  were  always  received  with  wonder, 
as  if  results  were  the  last  thing  they  expected.  This 
may  seem  a  sort  of  acid  comment  upon  the  faith  pos- 
sessed by  Christian  workers,  but  I  make  it  confidently, 
knowing  its  truth,  and  knowing,  too,  how  fully  all 
honest  Christians  will  agree  with  me.  It  is  no  matter 
for  wonder  that  God  should  keep  his  word  to  us,  but 
the  great  majority  of  us  act  as  if  it  was.  And  so  when 
the  terror  of  Rotherhithe  came  shambling  forward  at 
the  close  of  the  Saturday  evening's  prayer-meeting, 
and  professed  in  uncouth  terms  his  desire  to  seek  the 
Lord,  he  was  received  at  first  with  a  considerable 
amount  of  reserve.  Then  when  the  situation  adjusted 
itself,  all  went  to  the  opposite  extreme,  and  vied  with 
one  another  in  their  welcome  to  the  newcomer. 

He  told  them  that  he  was  tired  to  death  of  his  way 
of  living ;  that  the  words  of  Jemmy  on  the  "  Waste  " 
the  previous  Sunday  evening  had  gone  right  home  to 
his  heart;  and  that  never  again  could  he  do  or  say, 
or  even  think  as  he  had  done.  But  specially  he  had 

169 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

been  moved  by  the  baptismal  service.  That  had  set- 
tled the  matter  for  him,  and  he  only  longed  for  the 
time  to  come  when  he,  too,  might  testify  in  public  that 
he  was  a  lover  of  the  Lord.  Much  more  he  said,  also 
in  the  same  strain,  and  at  last,  such  was  the  agony 
of  conviction  in  which  he  found  himself,  he  burst 
into  tears,  and  for  some  time  refused  to  be  comforted. 
Great  was  the  rejoicing  among  the  brethren  and  sis- 
ters. All  felt,  and  justifiably  so,  that  such  a  brand 
plucked  from  the  burning  was  worth  any  amount  of 
labour  and  pains  to  secure.  They  yearned  over  the 
repentant  one  with  an  intensity  of  affection  that  can 
nowhere  else  be  witnessed  in  the  world's  scheme  of 
things,  except  in  the  case  of  parents  for  children.  He 
was  at  once  a  trophy  of  grace,  a  proof  of  their  ministry, 
and  a  divine  sealing  of  their  charter  of  apostleship. 
When  they  left  the  Hall  that  night  they  trod  the  clouds, 
and  for  a  little  while  even  the  disquieting  episode  of 
Jimson's  defection  was  forgotten. 

At  the  very  time  when  this  delightful  season  was  be- 
ing enjoyed  by  the  members  of  the  mission  Jimson  was 
closeted  with  three  chosen  chums,  fellow  foremen,  in 
the  dim  and  somewhat  strong-smelling  little  bar  par- 
lour of  one  of  those  overhanging  waterside  taverns 
which  still  survive  on  both  sides  of  the  Thames.  A 
bottle  of  rum  stood  on  the  rickety  table,  flanked  by 
a  sugar-basin  and  a  plate  containing  some  sliced  lemon. 
Four  glasses  also,  rilled  to  the  brim  with  a  comforting 
compound,  stood  there,  each  one  in  front  of  a  mem- 
ber of  the  quartette.  Each  in'  turn  gave  his  solemn 
opinion  of  the  state  of  affairs  at  the  Wren  Lane  Mis- 
sion. Fortified  as  well  as  consoled  by  the  potent  spirit, 
each  one  said  many  things  without  the  least  idea  of 
the  value  of  words;  but  deep  down  in  the  minds  of 

170 


Gathering  Clouds 


every  member  of  the  little  company  was  a  somewhat 
devilish  satisfaction  that  at  last  Joe  Jimson  had  seen 
how  narrow  and  unsatisfactory  was  the  way  of  a  Holy 
Joe,  and  had,  gaining  wisdom  in  time,  returned  to  the 
ways  of  knowledge — knowledge,  that  is,  of  how  to 
make  the  best  of  the  world  which  is,  and  leaving  such 
esoteric  considerations  as  the  comfort  of  others,  to  say 
nothing  of  one's  own  comfort  in  the  world  which  is  to 
come,  to  take  care  of  themselves. 

Said  Larkin  Smith,  as  he  cocked  his  opened  pocket- 
knife  into  the  hollow  of  his  thumb  and  proceeded  to 
rub  up  the  tobacco  he  had  just  shredded  from  a  plug 
into  fitting  filling  for  his  pipe :  "  I  alwus  did  say  as 
Jimson  was  aht  o'  place  in  that  gang,  didn't  I  ?  "  There 
was  no  answer,  but  a  series  of  solemn  nods,  so  he 
resumed :  "  Yers,  an'  wot  I  say  is,  men  like  erse,  wot's 
gotter  git  their  livin',  an'  git  it  mighty  'ard  too,  ain't 
got  no  time  fer  foolin'  aroun'  with  bisness  wot  b'longs 
ter  th'  parson.  Every  man  t'  'is  trade,  I  ses.  /  don't 
go  crabbin'  no  man's  job,  I  don't.  Let  th'  parsons 
look  aht  fer  men's  speritooal  matters,  w'ile  the  men's 
a-doin'  their  bit  o'  graft,  an'  's  long's  they  don't  inter- 
fere with  me  I  ain't  a-goin'  t'  interfere  wi'  them.  Live 
an'  let  live  's  my  motter.  Wot  do  I  know  about  re- 
ligion? Nothin'  at  all;  an'  I  don't  want  ter  know 
nothin'  w'en  I  k'n  get  a  man  'oose  parients  a'  got 
plenty  of  brass  ter  sen'  'im  ter  college  an'  learn  all 
there  is  ter  be  lerned,  wot  '11  come  rahnd  ter  me  an' 
take  all  the  'sponsibility  orf  my  shoulders,  an'  '11  come 
in  w'en  I  peg  aht  an'  read  me  the  words  wot  '11  pars 
me  froo,  an'  make  me  all  right  fer  the  nex'  world.  W'y 
sh'd  I  bother  my  stoopid  'ead  abaht  fings.  No,  not 
me  " ;  and  with  a  shake  of  his  head  worthy  of  a  Solon, 
Mr.  Smith  drained  his  glass  and  subsided  into  a  chair, 

171 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

puffing  vigorously  at  his  pipe,  as  a  man  who,  having 
stated  an  unanswerable  case,  awaits  a  futile  rejoinder 
in  order  that  he  may  with  a  sentence  or  so  crush  the 
rash  answerer  into  dust.  No  reply  came,  however,  for 
neither  of  the  other  two  strangers  took  sufficient  fur- 
ther interest  in  the  conversation  to  rouse  them  from 
the  pleasant  lethargy  induced  by  rum  and  tobacco, 
while  Jimson  himself,  although  passionately  argu- 
mentative, was  actually  too  much  ashamed  to  say  a 
word  either  against  the  faith  he  still  secretly  held,  or  in 
its  favour  when  he  was  engaged  in  acting  as  if  he  had 
done  with  it  forever.  And  there  for  the  present  we 
will  leave  him,  to  find  that  the  old  pleasures,  long  de- 
sired in  secret,  had  somehow  lost  their  savour;  that 
there  was  a  dull,  cold  sense  of  dissatisfaction  with 
everything  and  everybody,  allied  to  a  constantly  haunt- 
ing fear  of  having  done  irreparable  injury  to  his 
chances  of  ultimate  happiness,  and  an  aching  desire 
to  get  back  among  the  people  he  had  but  recently  been 
so  eager  to  leave. 

There  was,  as  I  have  before  noted,  in  the  enlarged 
Hall  an  angular,  cupboard-like  apartment  which  was 
used  as  a  vestry,  and  in  this  tiny  place  Jemmy  was 
wont  to  keep  in  a  little  box  the  moneys  collected, 
until  the  treasurer,  Brother  Jenkins,  who  was  by 
reason  of  his  employment  somewhat  irregular  in  his 
attendance,  should  come  and  take  it.  Jemmy  had 
adopted  this  plan  since  the  amounts  collected  had 
grown  in  importance,  for,  as  he  said  with  a  merry  smile, 
he  didn't  want  to  be  always  under  temptation  to  pay 
his  rent  or  have  a  good  feed  out  of  the  mission  money, 
as  he  should  if  he  kept  it  at  home.  On  this  Saturday 
evening  the  little  box  contained  over  £11,  the  pro- 
ceeds of  the  baptismal  service  and  the  previous  Sun- 

172 


Gathering  Clouds 


day's  collection,  and  sundry  other  sums  which  were 
due  to  be  paid  away.  But  when  Brother  Salmon  came 
as  usual  to  set  the  Hall  in  order  for  the  breaking  of 
bread  on  Sunday  morning',  he  found  to  his  horror  that 
some  one  had  been  before  him,  not  through  the  door, 
but  down  through  the  skylight.  Further  investigation 
revealed  the  startling  fact  that  Jemmy's  little  box  was 
gone.  Quite  stunned  by  the  discovery,  Brother  Sal- 
mon sat  down  and  tried  to  collect  himself,  then 
dropped  on  his  knees  for  his  unfailing  solace,  and  told 
the  Father  all  about  it.  He  rose  comforted,  and  said 
nothing  to  any  of  the  brethren  until  Jemmy  arrived, 
when,  taking  him  into  the  vestry,  he  told  the  poor  fellow 
the  heavy  tale.  It  was  a  crushing  blow  to  Jemmy,  dis- 
abling him  from  conducting  the  service,  which  was 
consequently  left  in  the  hands  of  Brother  Salmon. 
And  although  none  else  but  these  two  knew  of  the 
loss,  there  was  present  to  the  minds  of  all  a  sense  of 
something  being  wrong,  a  lack  of  the  joy  and  bright- 
ness usually  felt  at  the  Sunday-morning  meeting.  As 
soon  as  it  was  over  Jemmy  called  all  the  brethren  to- 
gether who  were,  if  one  may  call  them  so,  his  deacons, 
and  laid  the  loss  before  them,  taking  all  the  blame,  and 
yet  lamenting  that  the  treasurer  had  not  been  there  to 
take  the  money  away  with  him.  No  one  had  very  much 
to  say,  except  to  offer  the  peculiarly  British  sugges- 
tions of  locking  the  stable  after  the  loss  of  the  horse, 
but  it  was  unanimously  decided  that  Brother  Jenkins 
be  asked  to  resign  his  treasurership  as  soon  as  he  could 
be  seen.  All  seemed  afraid  to  suspect  any  one  whom 
they  knew,  and  no  one  had  any  suggestions  to  offer 
about  raising  this  large  sum.  They  felt  they  dared 
not  make  the  matter  public,  for  they  all  knew  how  a 
censorious  world  would  receive  such  a  statement.  It 

173 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

would  certainly  be  said  that  if  any  robbery  had  been 
committed  it  was  by  one  of  themselves,  and  those  per- 
sons who  had  not  contributed  a  farthing  towards  the 
expenses  would  be  the  loudest  in  their  condemnation 
and  sinister  suggestions  of  dishonesty. 

So  that  it  was  with  a  heavy  heart  the  little  band 
prepared  for  the  campaign  of  the  evening,  anticipat- 
ing much  trouble  during  the  approaching  winter  in 
keeping  out  of  debt,  when  open-air  meetings  could  not 
be  held  and  the  collections  would  be  confined  to  their 
own  body.  For  they  knew,  none  better,  that  in  the 
open-air  meetings  their  strength  lay,  and  that  such  a 
congregation  as  they  would  get  indoors  during  the 
winter  would  be  quite  unlikely  to  contribute  enough 
to  meet  current  expenses,  much  less  make  up  such  a 
loss  as  they  had  just  sustained.  In  the  open-air  that 
night  a  fairly  good  collection  was  taken,  amounting 
to  three  pounds.  But  there  were  no  conversions,  and 
very  little  enthusiasm  except  on  the  part  of  Bill  Har- 
rop,  who  proved  himself  a  tower  of  strength.  But 
for  him  the  meeting  would  have  been  dull  indeed. 
And  if  you,  reader,  feel  inclined  to  blame  these  poor 
apostles  for  their  easily  damped  ardour,  it  will  be  well 
for  you  to  remember  some  of  the  occasions  on  which 
you  have  felt  that,  because  some  loss  has  confronted 
you,  or  some  of  your  well-arranged  plans  have  gone 
a-gley,  the  sunshine  of  God's  favour  has  been  shut  off, 
and  your  heaven  has  been  overcast  with  lowering 
clouds  through  which  no  gleam  of  blue  has  been  dis- 
cernible. Since  (and  before)  the  days  of  Elijah  these 
same  phenomena  have  always  been  witnessed :  Chris- 
tians rising  to  the  most  sublime  heights  of  faith  in  the 
presence  of  truly  terrible  trials  and  fainting  before 
trifling  set-backs;  meeting  joyfully  the  tremendous 

174 


Gathering  Clouds 


frontal  assaults  of  the  devil  victoriously,  and  succumb- 
ing to  small  temptations  to  evil  most  ingloriously.  It 
has  ever  been  so,  and  presumably,  until  the  day  of 
God  shall  dawn,  it  will,  in  spite  of  its  apparent  paradox, 
so  continue  to  be. 


175 


CHAPTER  XVII 
,          FAITH'S  OPPORTUNITY 

FROM  the  hardly  contested  struggle  of  the  brethren 
in  dingy  Rotherhithe  it  is  doubtless  a  relief  to  return 
for  a  while  to  Saul,  grandly  justifying  his  high  calling 
upon  the  wide  sea.  It  is  no  exaggeration  to  say  that 
this  one  man's  goodness  of  character,  ability  in  his 
profession,  and  courage  to  do  what  he  felt  to  be  right, 
completely  altered  the  lives  of  everybody  on  board. 
For  if  it  be  impossible  for  seamen  to  withhold  their 
admiration  for  a  brutal  tyrant,  providing  he  be  a  first 
rate  sailorman,  how  much  more  must  they  be,  are 
they,  compelled  to  admire  a  perfect  seaman  who  is  at 
the  same  time  fearless,  righteous,  and  untiring!  Saul 
dominated  the  whole  ship,  and  although,  as  was  inevi- 
table, there  were  some  evil  spirits  who  hated  him  solely 
for  his  goodness,  they  did  not  dare  to  utter  their  sen- 
timents for  fear  of  what  the  majority  might  say  or 
do.  So  the  Asteroid  was  a  perfectly  peaceful  ship. 
From  day  to  day  the  routine  went  on  like  clockwork, 
and  there  never  was  the  slightest  necessity  for  either 
of  the  mates  to  interfere  in  any  way.  Not  only  so, 
but  the  mate  grew  to  repose  such  implicit  confidence 
in  Saul's  sailorizing  qualities  that  his  directions  for 
work  to  be  done  only  consisted  of  the  merest  outlines, 
and  any  suggestion  of  alteration  made  by  Saul  always 
met  with  a  most  cordial  welcome  from  him. 

176 


Faith's  Opportunity 

When  the  ship  reached  the  steady  fine  weather 
region,  Saul,  having  previously  obtained  the  consent  of 
the  mate,  held  a  class  three  nights  a  week  in  the  second 
dog-watch,  to  which  he  invited  all  the  apprentices  and 
those  members  of  the  crew  whose  seamanship  was  of 
poor  quality.  At  these  times  he  taught  his  pupils,  with 
a  thoroughness  and  assiduity  beyond  all  praise,  all  the 
mystery  of  knots,  splices,  seizings,  and  fancy-work,  in 
either  hemp  or  wire  rope.  And  this  teaching  business 
caught  on  so  that  soon  you  might  see  all  hands  in  their 
watch  on  deck  at  night,  or  below  in  the  dog-watches, 
busily  engaged  in  demonstrating  some  knotty  point  of 
sailorizing,  or  arguing  some  detail  of  seamanship,  such 
as  the  sending  up  or  down  of  mast  and  yards,  the  fit- 
ting of  rigging,  etc. 

Side  by  side  with  this  educational  process — which, 
it  may  be  remarked  in  passing,  was  not  merely  of  the 
highest  value  to  the  crew  practically,  but  kept  their 
minds  off  the  endless  filthy  gabble  that  is  so  char- 
acteristic of  ships'  forecastles — another  form  of  instruc- 
tion was  steadily  going  forward.  None  the  less  real 
because  it  was  unobtrusive,  it  was  not  confined  to  one 
period  of  the  day;  its  beneficent  influence  was  felt  all 
day  long.  In  Saul's  presence  at  first  none  of  his  men 
dared  to  use  bad  language  because  of  their  fear  of 
the  consequences ;  but  as  they  grew  to  know  him 
better  they  felt  that  it  would  be  a  much  greater  offence 
to  swear  before  him  than  it  would  be  elsewhere.  As 
an  instance  of  what  I  mean,  the  little  Scotchman  of 
whom  I  spoke  before  was  doing  a  job  one  day  under 
the  bo'sun's  eye  when  the  marline-spike  he  was  using 
slipped,  and  the  point  pierced  his  hand.  As  ninety  out 
of  a  hundred  sailors  would  have  done,  he  uttered  a 
fierce  curse  upon  the  tool.  Saul  gravely  said :  "  Did 

177 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

sayin'  that  do  ye  any  good  ?  "  Scotty  did  not  trust 
himself  to  answer,  so  Saul  went  on :  "I  can  tell  ye 
from  experience  that,  as  far  as  words  go, '  Thank  God ! ' 
would  have  just  the  same  effect  on  the  smart  as  that 
beastly  talk,  and  it  would  sound  ever  so  much  better. 
But  I  can  tell  you  more  than  that.  I  can  tell  you 
that  while  it's  cowardly  to  swear  at  a  thing  that  you 
know  can't  give  you  back  as  bad  as  you  sent,  cowardly 
to  swear  at  something  else  for  what  is  your  own  fault, 
it's  bad  for  ye  to  give  way  to  temper  like  that.  If 
ye  only  keep  a  hand  on  yourself  and  bridle  your 
tongue,  the  good  it'll  do  ye  is  beyond  all  count.  But 
I'll  admit  that  to  do  so  fully  needs  the  grace  of  God,  ex- 
cept one's  born  patient.  It  does  come  easier  then." 

Scotty  looked  up  at  the  handsome,  grave  face,  his 
memory  ran  back  along  the  various  incidents  of  the 
voyage  wherein  what  the  bo'sun  was  now  preaching 
had  been  practised  by  him,  and,  in  spite  of  the  smart- 
ing of  his  injured  hand,  he  was  convinced  and  ashamed 
of  himself.  For  herein  lies  the  supreme  teaching  value 
of  a  good  man's  life  on  board  ship.  Men  live  there  in 
an  intimacy  unknown  elsewhere  except  in  the  family. 
All  a  man's  faults  and  failings,  no  less  than  his  virtues, 
are  brought  under  the  mental  microscope,  and  every 
detail  of  his  behaviour,  even  if  it  is  never  discussed  in 
speech,  is  noted,  has  its  influence.  This  it  is  that 
makes  me  so  impatient  with  the  foolish  talk  of  people 
who  speak  of  the  Christian  as  if  he  or  she  were  a  crea- 
ture whose  mental  and  physical  fibre  were  in  some  way 
relaxed.  In  the  nature  of  things,  one  has  always  a 
battle  to  fight  when  well-doing  is  their  object ;  and, 
even  when  surrounded  by  Christian  friends  full  of  sym- 
pathy and  willingness  to  help,  that  battle  is  a  stern  one, 
bringing  out  all  that  is  most  heroic  in  man.  But  when 

178 


Faith's  Opportunity 

by  night  and  day,  week  in  week  out  for  months  and 
months  at  a  time,  a  man  is  surrounded  by  those  who 
are  eager  to  trip  him  up,  who  would  be  delighted  be- 
yond measure  at  his  fall,  and  whose  keenness  of  criti- 
cism makes  no  allowances  for  temperament,  or,  in- 
deed, difficulties  of  any  sort,  then  the  grandeur  of  the 
Christian  character  becomes  manifest,  the  true  hero 
stands  revealed.  But  verily  he  has  his  reward.  Not 
merely  for  patient  endurance  of  sorrow,  evil,  and  pain 
here,  but  in  the  growth  of  love,  the  closer  affinity  of  the 
creature  to  the  Creator,  the  gradual  return  to  the 
originally  conceived  man,  before  by  disobedience  he 
lost  that  fellowship  with  God  wherein  lay  perfect  peace 
and  happiness. 

It  was  in  this  manner  that  Saul  was  silently  edu- 
cating the  crew  of  the  Asteroid.  Except  that  he  was 
always  ready  with  an  encouraging  or  a  warning  word 
where  he  felt  it  might  be  fitly  spoken,  as  at  such  a  time 
as  I  have  just  alluded  to,  he  never  attempted  to  preach 
directly,  preferring  to  let  his  life  do  that  for  him,  and 
feeling  sure  that  if  he  only  lived  Christ,  sooner  or  later 
he  would  be  asked  to  preach  him  directly.  His  two 
berth-mates,  Chips  and  Sails,  were  in  great  straits.  His 
presence  in  the  half-deck  exercised  a  restraint  upon 
them  that  often  became  intolerable — only  his  bright, 
cheery  presence,  for  never  by  a  word  did  he  attempt  to 
force  upon  them  what  he  felt  they  so  sorely  needed. 
So,  as  a  rule,  whenever  he  was  in  the  house  they  went 
out  and  conversed  at  their  ease.  They  did  not  boycott 
him  intentionally,  feeling  that  such  a  proceeding  would 
be  futile,  but  they  simply  could  not  talk  before  him; 
their  darkness  could  not  stand  his  light.  Then  Chips 
was  taken  seriously  ill.  The  food  in  the  ship  was- of 
poor  quality — poorer,  so  the  two  petty  officers  said, 

179 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

than  it  had  ever  been  before ;  and,  owing  to  a  quantity 
of  tinned  fresh  meat  going  bad,  there  was  very  little 
change  of  diet  from  the  saltpetre-laden  meat.  This 
brought  on  an  illness  in  the  carpenter's  case  which, 
partly  the  long-delayed  result  of  vicious  habits,  might 
have  been  averted  with  proper  food.  And  now  the 
sufferer  realized  with  many  mental  pangs  how  good  a 
thing  it  was  to  have  a  tender-hearted,  untiring  ship- 
mate. Saul  nursed  him  like  a  mother,  prayed  for  him 
(but  never  intruded  his  prayers  upon  him),  read  his 
favourite  books  to  him  (for  Chips,  like  most  Scotch- 
men, was  a  great  reader),  and  generally  did  for  him 
what  such  a  man  might  be  expected  to  do.  And  at 
last,  one  Sunday  afternoon,  as  the  ship  was  sweetly 
breasting  the  bright  waters  of  the  Southern  Ocean  be- 
fore a  splendid  westerly  breeze,  with  a  regular  rhyth- 
mical swing,  as  of  an  infant's  cradle,  although  she  was 
making  a  good  ten  knots,  Chips  suddenly  turned  his 
weary  eyes  full  upon  Saul  as  the  latter  sat  by  the 
bunk-side  reading  the  Heart  of  Midlothian  to  him,  and 
said :  "  Bo'sun,  hoo  is  ut  ye've  never  off ert  tae  read  th' 
Bible  tae  me?" 

"  Chips,  my  boy,"  replied  Saul,  "  I've  been  waitin' 
and  prayin'  for  ye  t'  ask  me.  You  know  as  well  as  I 
do  that  if  I  had  offered  you  would  have  been  offended 
and  perhaps  scared  as  well,  because  some  people  have 
a  queer  notion  that  to  offer  to  read  the  Bible  to  a 
man  shows  that  you  think  he's  goin'  to  die.  Besides, 
I  do  try,  as  far  as  He  gives  me  grace  to  do  it,  to  imitate 
my  Master,  Jesus  Christ.  He  was  such  a  gentleman 
as  the  world's  never  seen  before  or  since.  An'  he 
never  forced  himself  on  people.  When  they  wanted 
him  he  was,  and  is,  always  ready,  but  to  come  where 
he  isn't  wanted  wouldn't  be  like  him.  But  he  went  on 

1 80 


Faith's  Opportunity 

livin'  his  perfect  life  in  the  sight  of  all  men,  and  if 
that  didn't  make  'em  love  him  it  was  because  the  devil 
had  so  blinded  'em  that  they  couldn't  see  the  beauty 
of  his  splendid,  perfect  manhood.  But  tell  me,  would 
you  like  me  to  read  to  you  ?  Read  the  Bible,  I  mean." 

Chips  with  closed  eyes  murmured :  "  Yes.  Not 
'cause  Ah  think  A'am  gaein'  t'  dee,  fur  Ah  daen't.  But 
Ah  wou'd  laik  fine  t'  see,  if  Ah  can,  hoo  it  is  that  a 
man  can  dae  fhat  ye've  been  daein'  iver  sin  ye  came 
aboord  this  ship.  Mahn,  Ah've  niver  seen  anything 
laik  ut  in  a'  ma  life.  Mony  an'  mony  a  mahn  Ah've 
been  acquent  wi',  them  wha'  profest  tae  be  unco  guid, 
bit  thae  wer  a'  rotten  at  hert,  an'  ther  professions  wer 
but  lees.  But  ye  seem  tae  be  wut  ma  idee  of  a  Christen 
mahn  ought  to  be.  Read  me  some  oot  o'  yer  Bible,  an' 
Ah'll  listen  wi'  all  ma  hairt." 

Without  another  word  Saul  reached  up  for  his 
Bible,  and  opened  it  at  the  fifteenth  of  Luke.  From 
lack  of  education  many  of  his  words  were  mispro- 
nounced in  a  fashion  to  make  a  critic  writhe,  but  he 
had  that  supreme  gift  of  a  good  reader,  a  sympathetic 
appreciation  of  what  he  was  reading,  that  made  his 
hearer  feel  the  words  as  the  writer  intended  they 
should  be  felt.  And  as  Chips  lay  and  listened  to  the 
sublime  parable,  he  saw,  as  if  in  a  picture  spread  out 
before  him,  the  pieces  of  silver  safe  in  the  bag,  while 
the  sorrowing  housewife,  candle  in  hand,  swept  and 
searched  diligently  till  she  found  the  piece  which  was 
lost.  He  saw  the  ninety-nine  sheep  cosily  nestling 
within  the  fold,  while  up  and  down  the  bleak  mountain- 
side the  shepherd  sought  untiringly  for  the  foolish, 
straying  one.  And  his  interest  grew  poignant  in  its 
intensity  as  Saul,  choking  with  emotion,  reproduced 
the  divine  picture  of  the  Father  on  his  lonely  watch- 

181 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

tower  straining  his  eyes  out  over  the  desert  for  the 
drooping,  wayworn  figure  of  his  returning  son.  So 
great  was  the  power  of  sympathetic  faith  possessed  by 
the  reader,  that  Chips  was  one  of  the  company  of  pub- 
licans and.  sinners  drawn  nigh  to  hear  him  who  spake 
as  never  man  spake  before  or  since,  and  it  was  with 
a  sense  of  perfect  realization  of  that  wonderful  scene 
that  he  said,  as  Saul  looked  up  at  the  story's  close : 
"  Thankye,  thankye,  bo'sun ;  ye'll  never  know  what 
you've  dune  fer  me  this  aefthernune.  May  God  repay 
ye,  fer  Ah  niver  can.  Noo,  Ah'll  sleep,  Ah  think,  fer 
Ah  feel  that  comforted  ye  caen't  believe." 

So  Saul  put  down  his  book  and  went  on  deck, 
where,  leaning  over  the  rail,  his  eyes  feasted  upon  the 
cool  loveliness  of  the  departing  day.  He  took  in  every 
detail  of  curving  wave,  diamond  spray,  delicate  play  of 
colour  above  and  beneath,  until  his  heart  overflowed 
with  its  upspringing  fountain  of  joy,  and  the  big  tears 
of  perfect  happiness  rolled  one  by  one  down  his 
bronzed  face.  There  are  many  people  who  cannot 
dissociate  the  idea  of  tears  from  sorrow;  many  more 
who  feel  that  for  a  man  to  weep  proves  him  unmanly. 
Poor  people !  What  do  they  know  of  joy  or  manliness  ? 
Jesus  wept,  and  no  man  ever  attained  to  his  overtower- 
ing  stature  of  true  manliness  ;  while  true,  full  joy  must 
have  tears  or  the  heart  will  burst,  the  joyful  one  will  die. 

But  Saul's  greatest  blessing  was  found  in  the  trans- 
formation of  the  once  truculent  and  worthless  Larry 
Doolan.  His  experience  the  first  day  out  had  been  to 
him  a  revelation  of  what  he  was  himself,  and  what 
this  strong,  brave  man  was  who  had  first  mastered  him 
and  then  saved  his  life.  He  was  truly  a  changed  man. 
Very  silent  and  reserved,  scarcely  ever  heard  to  speak 
unless  absolutely  compelled  to  do  so,  willing,  teach- 

182 


Faith's  Opportunity 

able,  and  obedient  in  the  highest  degree,  there  was  as 
much  difference  between  him  and  the  Larry  Doolan 
of  former  days  as  between  light  and  dark.  And  his 
dog-like  affection  for  Saul  was  a  pathetic  thing  to  see. 
A  deep  content  seemed  to  fill  him  if  only  he  could 
work  near  his  deliverer ;  he  followed  him  wistfully  with 
his  eyes,  and  at  his  lightest  word  the  once  dawdling 
loafer  sprang  to  execute  the  order  as  if  his  life  de- 
pended upon  his  promptness.  But  speak  to  Saul,  Larry 
could  not,  except  in  the  way  of  business.  All  his 
natural  volubility  seemed  to  have  deserted  him,  and 
he  could  only  express  what  he  felt  by  his  looks.  But 
once  or  twice  in  the  fo'csle,  when  some  lewd  fellows 
of  the  baser  sort  ventured  a  disparaging  remark  about 
the  bo'sun — threw  it  out  as  a  sort  of  feeler  like — Larry's 
dark  eyes  flashed,  his  fists  clinched  themselves,  and 
he  growled  out  a  fierce  warning  that  might  not  be 
safely  disregarded. 

And  so  the  passage  drew  near  to  its  close.  Chips 
recovered,  but  was  sadly  altered  in  physique  from  the 
tremendous  demand  made  upon  his  enfeebled  constitu- 
tion. The  sail-maker,  a  weak,  good-natured  fellow, 
taking  his  cue  from  the  penitent  carpenter,  now  sat 
with  him,  and  listened  while  Saul  read  a  chapter  every 
night  out  of  his  beloved  Bible,  and  hazarded  a  few 
pithy  comments  at  intervals.  And  then  the  trio  sud- 
denly became  aware  that  during  the  reading  there  were 
listeners  outside  the  door.  Some  of  the  watch  on 
deck  took  to  creeping  aft  and  listening  to  Saul's  melo- 
dious voice  as  he  read  the  Word.  And  presently  came 
that  for  which  Saul  had  hungered  ever  since  he  came 
on  board,  an  invitation  to  read,  to  all  hands  that  could 
attend,  one  Sunday  afternoon,  at  which  his  heart  leaped 
for  joy.  Seated  on  the  fore-hatch,  with  the  chaps  pic- 

*  183 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

turesquely  disposed  about  him,  the  bo' sun  read  amid 
a  silence  so  profound  that  you  could  almost  hear  the 
deep  breathing.  The  impression  made  was  very  great ; 
how  great  could  only  dimly  be  surmised,  but  the  im- 
mediate results  were  evident.  Only  four  fellows  held 
aloof — men  who  had  made  up  their  minds  to  hate  Saul, 
and  whom  no  amount  of  admiration  for  his  seamanship 
or  manly  character  could  alter — and  Larry.  But  the 
latter  only  kept  away  from  the  reading  from  a  mis- 
taken idea  that  he  would  be  held  disloyal  to  his  religion 
if  he  listened  to  a  heretic's  reading  of  the  Bible.  His 
conscience  was  becoming  very  tender,  and  he  longed 
to  do  right  at  whatever  cost  to  himself.  And  Saul, 
knowing  his  difficulty  well,  did  not  press  him  with  in- 
vitations. He  only  remained  instant  in  prayer  that  this 
poor,  blind  heart  might  be  opened  to  receive  the  light 
and  be  led  by  the  great  Guide  into  the  way  of  peace. 

The  readings  were  so  great  a  success  that  they 
were  renewed  at  every  possible  opportunity,  and, 
strange  as  it  may  seem,  Saul  had  much  difficulty  in  re- 
maining humble  and  not  puffed  up  by  this  wonderful 
success.  But  it  has  ever  been  so ;  the  gentle  souls 
that  could  endure  martyrdom,  that  under  all  adverse 
circumstances  only  shine  brighter  and  more  stead- 
fastly, are  often  lulled  to  sleep,  or  tempted  to  become 
well  satisfied  with  themselves  when  the  sunshine  of 
God's  love  beams  upon  them,  and  their  ministry  is 
being  blessed  and  accepted  by  all  around  them.  Of 
course,  it  is  only  a  spiritual  application  of  the  universal 
rule  that  there  be  few  mortals  who  can  properly  en- 
dure success,  especially  such  success  as  this  of  Saul's. 
It  surpassed  his  most  fervent  hopes,  that  he  should  find 
all  hand,  except,  of  course,  the  after-guard,  listening 
patiently  while  out  of  the  Book  of  books  he  read  the 

184 


Faith's   Opportunity 

grand  old  story  in  that  language  which  is  so  plain  that 
a  child  may  apprehend  it.  He  felt  sure  that  there 
would  be  a  great  ingathering  presently;  looked  for- 
ward to  it  confidently,  and  the  contemplation  made  him 
supremely  happy. 

After  a  smart  passage  of  eighty-seven  days,  the 
Asteroid  arrived  at  Calcutta,  and  the  way  her  crew- 
worked,  unbending  and  stowing  away  sails  as  she  was 
swiftly  towed  up  the  great  river,  extorted  a  few  words 
of  wondering  praise  from  the  pilot,  one  of  those  mas- 
terful chiefs  of  the  piloting  profession  that  only  seems 
to  attain  their  full  development  in  Calcutta.  "  Fine 
crew  you've  got,  Captain  Vaughan,"  said  he,  as  that 
gentleman  and  he  promenaded  the  deck  while  the  sails 
fell  around  like  autumn  leaves.  "  Yes,  you  may  well 
say  that,"  answered  the  skipper.  "  I  don't  want  a 
better  lot,  more  willing  or  more  cheerful.  And  yet 
their  being  so  is  a  profound  mystery  to  me.  Practi- 
cally their  smartness  and  their  willingness  is  the  re- 
sult of  one  man's  work,  for  a  more  miserable  set  of 
wastrels  than  the  majority  looked  like  when  first  they 
showed  up,  leaving  London,  you  could  hardly  imagine. 
But  that  bo'sun  of  mine  has  worked  miracles  with 
'em.  He's  got  religion,  has  that  fellow — the  right  kind  ; 
and  he  not  only  taught  them  to  obey  him,  to  look 
slippy  when  they're  called,  an'  to  work  without  growl- 
ing, but  he's  got  'em  to  sit  and  listen  to  him  while 
he  reads  and  expounds  the  Bible  to  'em.  I  tell  you, 
he  makes  me  feel  mighty  'shamed  of  myself,  especially 
as  he's  made  my  life  a  very  easy  one.  I  haven't  had 
a  thing  to  trouble  my  head  about  all  the  passage,  ex- 
cept the  navigation;  neither  has  the  mate.  That  fel- 
low's done  it  all." 

The  pilot  listened  gravely  until  the  skipper  had 
185 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

finished,  and  then,  with  an  air  of  wisdom,  such  as 
might  become  a  man  who  was  fully  qualified  to  say 
the  last  word  on  the  subject,  replied :  "  Well,  Captain 
Vaughan,  what  you  say  is  very  interesting  as  a  study 
in  superstitions.  It  is  well  worthy  of  attention,  the 
manner  in  which  these  lower  intelligences  blindly  at- 
tach themselves  limpet-wise  to  some  perfectly  impos- 
sible farrago  of  jumbled-up  ideas,  and  the  lengths  to 
which  they  will  go  in  support  of  some  theory  for 
which  they  could  not,  if  their  lives  depended  upon  it, 
bring  one  single  reasonable  proof.  But  I  confess  that 
your  testimony  to  this  man's  behaviour  is  quite  out- 
side the  ordinary  range  of  my  experience.  Religion, 
of  whatever  brand,  I  have  always  found  unfits  a  man 
or  woman  for  the  ordinary  workaday  business  of  the 
world ;  makes  them,  in  fact,  more  or  less  idiotic,  while 
endowing  them  with  a  plausible  cunning  that  is  a  very 
common  feature  of  idiocy  in  general.  That  you  should 
have  a  man  here,  in  such  a  position  as  bo'sun,  an  open 
professor  of  religion,  and  withal  a  man  who  can  do  his 
work  and  make  others  do  theirs,  can  keep  his  place, 
and  his  preaching  for  its  proper  time,  whenever  that 
may  be,  and  at  the  end  of  three  months  can  command 
your  unqualified  good  word,  is  enough  to  make  one 
think  that  the  age  of  miracles  is  not  yet  past." 

"  You've  exactly  expressed  my  feelings  in  the  mat- 
ter, pilot,"  returned  the  captain,  "  except  that  I  de- 
tect in  your  tone  a  touch  of  incredulity.  But  I  swear 
to  you  that  I  have  studiously  underrated  the  man  to 
you,  and  I  believe  if  you'll  keep  a  close  eye  upon  him 
during  the  short  time  you  are  on  board  that  you'll  find 
it  easier  to  believe  me.  Mind,  I  do  believe  that  whether 
he'd  got  religion  or  not  he'd  be  a  first-class  man,  but 
he's  compelled  me  to  believe  also  that  he  certainly  is  a 

1 86 


Faith's  Opportunity 

very  much  better  man  with  religion  than  he  would  be 
without  it.  He  tells  the  chaps  that  before  he  was  con- 
verted  " 

"  Before  he  was  what?  "  interjected  the  pilot. 

"  Now,  you  know  what  I  said,"  laughed  the  skip- 
per. "  I'm  not  responsible  for  his  terminology,  neither 
am  I  going  to  enter  into  any  discussion  as  to  the 
meaning  he  attaches  to  the  words  he  uses.  Before  he 
was  '  converted/  he  says  he  wasn't  anything  like  so 
good  a  workman  as  he  is  now,  because  he  didn't  take 
the  same  interest  in  his  work.  He  was  lazy  and 
drunken  whenever  he  could  possibly  indulge  in  either 
of  those  habits,  and,  in  fact,  he  lived  the  life  of  an 
intelligent  animal  without  the  wise  instincts  which 
prevent  an  animal  from  doing  harm  to  its  own 
body." 

"  I  see,"  sighed  the  pilot  "  I  shall  have  to  take  a 
few  days  off  and  study  this  phenomenon  of  yours,  cap- 
tain, and  then,  if  I'm  any  judge  of  the  workings  of  a 
man's  mind  by  what  he  says,  I  may  as  well  study  you 
likewise,  for  I  believe,  if  your  bo'sun  dared  to  tell  you 
what  he's  thinkin'  about  you,  he  would  say :  '  Thou 
art  not  far  from  the  kingdom  of  God.'  " 

Startled  beyond  measure,  the  captain  turned  sharp- 
ly, his  face  flushing  crimson,  upon  the  pilot,  as  if  to  say 
something  in  a  hurry.  But  he  could  not  find  words, 
apparently,  for  after  a  pause  he  murmured :  "  Ah ! 
pilot,  although  I  am  astonished  to  hear  you  quoting 
Scripture,  I've  got  to  say  this :  if  getting  into  the  king- 
dom of  God  will  make  me  half  as  good  a  man  as  my 
bo'sun,  I'll  do  all  I  can  to  get  there.  But  there's  the 
luncheon-bell.  Can  you  come  down  with  us,  or  shall 
I  have  yours  sent  up  here  ?  " 

"  Oh,  I  can  come  down.  I  think  my  leadsman  is 
187 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

fully  competent  to  take  her  along  for  the  next  dozen 
miles."    And  they  disappeared  below. 

As  I  write  these  few  last  lines  I  keep  on  thinking 
of  what  their  effect  will  be  upon  the  minds  of  men  who 
may  honour  me  by  reading  them,  but  whose  mental 
attitude  is  that  of  the  pilot.  Will  they  dismiss  them  as 
invention,  or  will  they  give  me  the  credit  of  having 
stated  what  I  know  to  be  true  ?  I  hope  for  the  latter, 
of  course,  because  it  is  a  great  thing  to  get  a  thinking 
man  or  woman  to  receive  evidence  which  they  feel 
they  can  trust  even  though  it  cuts  across  the  roots  of 
many  of  their  theories.  As  a  piece  of  first-hand  evi- 
dence I  do  not  think  its  importance  can  be  exag- 
gerated, and  for  this  reason.  To-day,  wherever  edu- 
cated people  are  discussing  this  pre-eminent  problem 
of  the  effect  of  Christianity  upon  the  world,  they  are 
seeking  for  results  in  men's  lives.  If  they  find  them  to 
be  good,  they  must  be  convinced ;  but  if  they  find  that 
medievalism  is  still  rampant  among  us  in  a  modified 
form,  that  the  Christianity  generally  understanded  of 
the  people  is  merely  a  matter  of  ceremonial,  of  ex- 
ternal compliance  with  certain  forms,  while  the  heart, 
the  life  motives,  remain  untouched — if  they  see,  in 
short,  that  to  the  vast  majority  of  religionists  among 
us  Christ  is  but  the  name  of  a  mysterious  personage 
far  away  in  the  eternities,  or  an  awful  image  extended 
upon  a  cross  of  gold,  enshrined  in  a  magnificent  build- 
ing, and  bowed  down  to  by  troops  of  gorgeously  be- 
dight  priests  doing  by  proxy  that  which  God  has  said 
every  soul  must  do  for  himself  or  herself — then  they 
will  turn  sadly  away,  feeling  certain  that  such  a  religion 
is  but  one  of  the  many  which  men  have  adopted  since 
the  creation  of  the  world  for  fear  of  what  may  happen 
to  them  hereafter. 

188 


Faith's  Opportunity 

Let  these  thoughtful  ones  but  be  persuaded  that 
Christ  is  as  real  to  genuine  Christians  now  as  he  was 
to  the  Twelve ;  that  to  men  and  women  who  entertain 
him  without  any  man's  intervention  he  is,  as  he  said 
he  would  be,  a  very  present  aid  in  time  of  trouble,  and 
a  well-spring  of  joy  at  all  times;  let  them  devote  as 
much  time  to  the  search  for  facts  relating  to  the  lives 
of  those  who  are  acquainted  with  God  as  they  would 
to  the  elucidation  of  some  vexed  question  concerning, 
say,  the  nervous  system  of  the  mollusca — and  we  shall 
have  a  freshness  of  preaching,  an  outburst  of  conquer- 
ing faith  in  the  unseen  verities  of  life  that  is  hid  with 
Christ  in  God  as  the  \vorld  has  not  witnessed  since 
apostolic  days. 


189 


CHAPTER  XVIII 

CALCUTTA   AND    HOME 

THE  mooring  of  a  big  sailing-ship  at  Calcutta  is 
a  most  interesting  process,  and  one  that  I  have  often 
felt  merited  a  detailed  description.  But  I  have  grave 
doubts  whether  this  is  the  place  to  give  it,  much  as  I 
should  like  to  bring  before  my  readers  the  natives 
diving  to  hook  on  the  gigantic  chain  moorings  lying 
at  the  bottom,  the  great  launches  heaving  those  cables 
up,  and  all  the  complicated  business  of  securing  a  huge 
ship  fore  and  aft  in  such  security  that  when  the  "  bore," 
or  tidal  wave,  sweeps  diagonally  up  the  river,  carrying 
devastation  far  and  wide  among  the  native  craft,  it  may 
beat  in  vain  upon  the  long  rows  of  Western  ships  riding 
near  the  banks  of  the  Hooghly. 

As,  however,  the  purpose  of  this  history  is  con- 
cerned with  quite  other  matters,  I  must  reluctantly 
pass  over  so  tempting  a  theme,  and  point  out  that  now 
Saul  was,  to  his  great  delight,  in  a  position  to  call  in 
potent  auxiliaries  to  complete  the  work  he  had  so 
nobly  begtm  in  the  minds  of  his  crew.  The  behaviour 
of  four  of  the  latter  gave  him  some  little  trouble,  for 
they  neglected  no  opportunity  of  getting  the  worse 
for  liquor;  but  as  they  were  discountenanced  by  all 
the  rest  of  the  hands,  their  folly  was  not  nearly  so 
harassing  to  Saul  as  it  was  to  themselves.  And  the 
change  in  Chips  was  simply  bewildering  to  the  cap- 

190 


Calcutta  and  Home 

tain.  He  seemed  to  have  lost  all  desire  for  a  debauch. 
Instead  of,  as  in  former  times,  seizing  the  first  oppor- 
tunity to  get  ashore  with  the  sail-maker,  and  return 
riotous  with  liquor  as  soon  as  his  means  of  obtaining 
any  more  were  exhausted,  he  did  not  now  go  ashore 
at  all,  remaining  impervious  to  the  hints  of  the  sail- 
maker,  who  apparently  could  not  go  without  him.  In- 
stead, he  sought  Saul's  society  as  much  as  possible 
when  off  duty,  as  if  he  felt  that  he  must  draw  strength 
from  him  to  resist  the  temptation  that  assailed  him 
continuously. 

The  ship  was  moored  on  Tuesday,  and  for  the  re- 
mainder of  the  week  no  one  went  ashore  except  the 
topers  aforesaid,  and  they,  by  the  time  Saturday  night 
came,  had  met  with  so  much  contumely  from  their 
shipmates  for  the  way  in  which  they  had  carried  on  that 
they  seemed  to  have  lost  all  desire  to  go  ashore  any 
more  at  all.  Meanwhile  Saul  had  been  making  in- 
quiries quietly,  and  had  found  that  there  was  being 
conducted  in  the  Radha  Bazar,  at  the  Sailors'  Rest, 
a  special  mission  for  seamen  by  some  Americans. 
Glowing  accounts  of  their  success  among  the  sailors 
reached  his  ears,  and  he  determined  upon  a  bold  step, 
having  first  long  and  earnestly  besought  God  for  a 
blessing  upon  what  he  was  about  to  do.  On  Saturday 
night  he  sought  the  skipper  privately,  and  asked  for  a 
small  advance  on  account  of  his  wages  earned.  This 
the  captain  gave  him  readily.  Then  he  further  asked 
whether  the  captain  would  approve  of  his  taking  all 
hands  ashore  in  the  afternoon  to  a  meal  and  a  meet- 
ing afterward.  The  "  old  man  "  professed  himself  de- 
lighted, and  Saul,  after  thanking  him,  went  forward, 
and  succeeded  in  getting  the  promise  of  all  hands  but 
"  the  four  "  to  come  and  share  his  hospitality  at  the 

191 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

Seamen's  Rest  at  supper  time,  and  stay  to  the  meet- 
ing afterward.  He  told  them  that  he  had  gone  bail,  as 
it  were,  for  their  good  behaviour,  feeling  sure  that 
none  of  them  would  slip  away  and  go  on  a  private  tear 
of  their  own,  and  so  make  him  regret  having  invited 
them  ashore. 

He  was  delighted  at  his  success,  and  in  the  morn- 
ing went  ashore  by  himself  and  had  an  interview  with 
the  mission  folks,  finding  to  his  intense  satisfaction 
that  they  were  men  after  his  own  heart — men  whose 
company  you  could  not  be  in  five  minutes  without 
finding  that  they  were  real  Christians,  but  whose  par- 
ticular denomination  it  would  be  quite  beyond  your 
power  to  discover.  When  he  unfolded  his  plan  they 
entered  into  the  spirit  of  it  at  once,  but  vainly  en- 
deavoured to  induce  him  to  allow  them  to  bear  part  of 
the  cost.  There,  however,  he  was  immovable,  feel- 
ing, as  he  said,  that  it  was  in  the  nature  of  a  thank- 
offering  for  the  wonderful  way  in  which  God  had  hon- 
oured him  by  making  use  of  him  throughout  the  pas- 
sage. Then,  having  made  all  his  arrangements,  he 
returned  on  board,  and  at  five  o'clock  the  expedition 
set  out  from  the  ship,  having  been  preceded,  all  un- 
known to  them,  by  the  skipper,  who  was  simply  burn- 
ing with  desire  to  know  the  secret  of  Saul's  hold  over 
the  men. 

Somewhat  sheepishly,  with  a  feeling  as  if  they  were 
doing  something  derogatory  to  their  manhood,  the 
little  band  rolled  up  the  steps  of  the  Ghat  and  across 
the  Maidan.  But  it  was  not  until  they  reached  the 
Rest,  and  sat  down  to  the  large  table  reserved  for 
them,  that  they  began  to  shake  off  their  shyness. 
Their  eyes  brightened  at  the  sight  of  the  crisp,  green 
salad — lettuces,  cucumbers,  endive,  and  watercress — at 

192 


Calcutta  and  Home 

the  tasty  dishes  of  sliced  ham  and  beef  and  the  dainty 
rolls,  and  pats  of  butter  on  ice.  All  sailors  who  have 
known  that  overpowering  hunger  for  green  earth- 
fruits,  bred  of  a  long-enforced  abstinence  from  them, 
will  appreciate  their  feelings.  For  my  part,  I  know 
that  when  one  morning  I  went  into  the  great  bazar 
at  Calcutta  and  saw  the  marvellously  beautiful  array 
of  green  vegetables  just  down  from  the  hills,  I  felt  posi- 
tively ill  with  desire — a  desire  as  overwhelming  as  the 
traveller  in  the  desert  has  for  a  drink  of  cool,  fresh 
water,  not  to  be  understood  by  any  one  who  has  never 
been  similarly  placed. 

Gradually  their  reserve  thawed  out,  and  they 
laughed  unrestrainedly  at  the  quaint  turns  of  speech 
given  utterance  to  by  that  grave  pair  of  American 
preachers  who  had  sat  down  to  supper  with  them. 
Oh,  that  heavenly  gift  of  humour!  When  it  is  allied 
to  a  sacred  sense  of  the  holiness  with  which  God  in- 
vests his  children,  when  the  men  and  women  of  God 
are  not  afraid  either  to  laugh  themselves  or  to  see 
others  laugh,  how  good  and  pleasant  and  potent  a 
thing  it  is  to  be  sure !  Before  the  meal  was  ended,  not 
a  man  present  there  but  felt  that  he  could  do  anything 
for  those  two  Americans.  They  were  acknowledged 
to  be  real  good  fellows  that  anybody  could  feel  at  home 
with,  and  when,  at  the  close  of  the  meal,  the  elder  of 
the  two,  a  slender,  dark-eyed  man  of  about  forty,  with 
a  flowing  brown  beard,  stood  up  and  said,  "  Waal, 
boys,  if  you  don't  mind,  I  sh'd  like  just  t'  thank  the 
dear  Father  for  his  abundant  mercies,"  every  head  was 
at  once  bowed,  and  not  a  heart  present  but  beat  re- 
sponsive to  the  short,  pithy  thanksgiving  that  was 
offered  up. 

Under  these  circumstances,  it  was  no  wonder  that 

193 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

the  little  company  went  into  the  hall  set  apart  for  the 
meeting  with  nearly  all  their  shyness  replaced  by  an 
eager  desire  to  hear  what  their  new-found  friends 
would  have  to  say  to  them  from  the  vantage  ground 
of  the  platform.  A  splendid  frame  of  mind  in  which 
to  find  one's  hearers,  and  one  intensely  helpful  to  the 
speaker,  who  should  be  keenly  sensible  of  sympathy 
among  his  audience,  should  be  able  to  see  the  heart- 
hunger  in  their  faces,  and  at  once  become  the  medium 
of  communication  between  them,  and  the  source  of  all 
supply  for  such  needs  as  theirs.  Before  the  time  ap- 
pointed for  the  commencement  of  the  meeting  (seven 
o'clock)  the  room  was  full  of  sailors,  and  a  better  con- 
gregation it  would  have  been  hard  to  find.  There  was 
plenty  of  singing,  conducted  by  a  little  group  at  the 
far  end  of  the  room  remote  from  the  door,  and  led 
by  a  harmonium,  rousing  choruses  in  which  all  could 
join  and  sing  to  their  hearts'  content. 

Then  came  the  praying  and  preaching,  both  done 
in  that  eminently  common-sense  way  which  seems  to 
be  the  birthright  of  Americans,  most  of  whom  are  born 
orators.  It  was  utterly  impossible  to  suspect  those 
men  of  pose  or  cant.  Their  language  was  the  lan- 
guage of  every  day ;  their  similes  were  drawn,  like  their 
Master's,  from  homeliest  things ;  they  spoke  with 
naked  hearts  to  naked  hearts,  and  with  a  full,  tender 
appreciation  of  the  needs  and  limitations  of  their 
hearers.  And  when  they  had  delivered  their  message, 
while  yet  the  interest  of  their  hearers  was  at  highest 
tension,  they  paused,  and  in  earnest,  beseeching  tones 
implored  all  present  not  to  allow  this  present  opportu- 
nity of  joining  the  noble  army  of  Christ's  warriors 
against  the  evil  of  the  world  to  slip  away  from  them. 
There  was  no  excitement,  no  frantic  endeavour  to 

194 


Calcutta  and  Home 

work  upon  the  feelings  of  their  listeners,  but  a  calm, 
lucid,  reasonable  presentation  of  the  facts  to  be  faced. 
And  then,  when  the  inevitable  invitation  came  for  all 
those  who  would  decide  to  serve  the  King  henceforth 
to  stand  up,  there  was  an  immediate  response,  not  from 
scattered  ones  here  and  there,  but  from  almost  every 
one  in  the  room,  to  the  number  of  about  one  hundred 
and  fifty.  Then,  when  the  public  confession  had  been 
made,  the  preacher,  after  t-lling  them  all  to  sit  down 
again,  said :  "  Now,  my  dear  chaps,  those  of  you  who 
are  absolutely  sincere,  and  who  haven't  just  risen  be- 
cause you  saw  others  do  so,  you're  just  enlisted  into  a 
conquering  army,  and  you'll  have  to  go  on  fighting 
till  your  lives  end.  You  won't  get  plain  sailing  on 
that  sea  upon  which  you  have  just  embarked  any  more 
than  you  get  it  now ;  but  ah !  what  kind  of  sailors 
would  you  be  if  the  ocean  was  always  as  smooth  as  a 
mill-pond,  if  there  was  always  just  enough  wind  to  fill 
your  sails  and  no  more,  and  that  wind  was  always  fair  ? 
One  of  your  most  frequently  used  words  of  praise  is 
'  He  was,  or  is,  a  man.'  Well,  men  are  bred,  as  you 
know,  in  hard  struggle,  in  fierce  fighting  with  all  the 
forces  that  try  to  hinder  them  from  their  good,  to  keep 
them  from  the  haven  where  they  fain  would  be.  Now, 
I'm  going  to  wish  you  all  good-night,  and  you'll  go 
back  aboard  your  ships  with  a  desire  you  never  had 
before,  a  determination  to  serve  God  and,  therefore, 
your  fellow-men.  And  he  who  is  almighty  will  supply 
all  your  needs  in  Christ  Jesus.  Good-night." 

The  words  had  hardly  left  his  lips  when  a  strong 
voice  arose  from  near  the  platform,  "  Hold  on  a 
minute,  men."  All  hands  stopped  in  their  tracks  as  if 
turned  into  stone,  while  a  burly  figure  mounted  the 
platform  and  faced  them.  It  was  Captain  Vaughan. 

195 


The  Apostles  of  the   Southeast 

There  was  a  silence  that  might  be  felt  as  he  said: 
"  Men,  I  very  nearly  lost  an  opportunity,  through  bein' 
a  coward,  that  might  never  have  come  to  me  any  more. 
Some  of  you  know  me ;  I  command  a  big  ship  here — 
the  Asteroid — an'  on  my  passage  out  from  London 
I've  seen  a  specimen  of  what  a  Christian  can  be  and 
do  that  has  simply  broken  down  all  my  wrong  ideas 
about  Christians.  Men,  you  all  know  what  a  bo'sun 
can  make  of  a  ship.  Well,  my  bo'sun  bein'  a  Chris- 
tian has  made  my  ship  one  of  the  most  comfortable  on 
the  high  seas.  He's  a  man,  among  all  the  men  I 
have  ever  been  shipmates  with,  the  noblest.  Through 
his  example  I  am  here  to-night;  but,  less  brave  than 
he,  I  nearly  allowed  my  chance  of  standing  up  for  God 
slip  past  me.  Thank  God,  I  didn't  do  so.  I  call  you  all 
to  witness  that  James  Vaughan,  master  of  the  British 
ship  Asteroid,  has  signed  on  to  serve  God  from  to- 
night, come  fair  or  foul,  and  may  he  give  me  grace  so 
to  Jive  that  I  shall  never  bring  any  discredit  on  his 
great  cause." 

There  was  a  breathless  pause  as  Captain  Vaughan 
ceased  speaking,  and  then  (who  started  it  could  not 
be  told)  a  tremendous  round  of  cheering  ensued.  "  Hip, 
Hip,  Hurrah !  "  six  times  repeated,  until  the  whole 
building  rang  again,  and  men  from  coffee-bar  and  read- 
ing-room came  flocking  in  to  see  what  strange  thing 
had  happened.  Then  all  hands  dispersed  into  the  night, 
and  sought  their  several  ships,  singing  with  stentorian 
voices  such  choruses  as  they  could  remember  of  what 
they  had  heard ;  while  the  dusky  denizens  of  the  bazar 
looked  on  astounded,  and  forbore  to  invite  to  "  Come 
see,  plenty  nice  house  me  fine  for  you;  neber  mine 
money ;  can  get  from  tailor,  bumboat  man,  anybody." 
No ;  though  the  Hindoo  did  not  savvy  the  meaning  of 

196 


Calcutta  and  Home 

this  strange  outburst  of  song,  he  could  not  mistake  it 
for  the  ribald,  mirthless  noises  made  by  drunkards,  and 
he  stood  back,  allowing  the  joyful  procession  to  pass, 
break  up,  and  join  its  several  ships. 

To  all  those  who  know  what  a  great  seaport  abroad 
is  like  in  the  portions  of  it  affected  by  seamen,  it  will 
be  unnecessary  to  say  how  profoundly  Calcutta  was 
affected  by  these  marvellous  proceedings.  It  is  hope- 
less to  try  and  explain  to  those  who  do  not,  but  one  may 
just  say  that  the  wonderful  work  effected  by  the  spread 
of  the  Gospel  among  the  sailors  was  the  theme  of  every 
English-speaking  person's  talk.  To  the  masters  of  the 
ships  it  was,  while  the  subject  of  many  cheap  witticisms, 
secretly  a  matter  for  much  self-congratulation,  as  it 
might  well  be  from  the  marvellous  way  in  which  they 
found  their  labours  lightened,  their  troubles  coming  to 
an  end.  But  our  concern  being  with  the  Asteroid  at 
present,  we  must  leave  all  the  other  ships  and  those  por- 
tions of  their  crews  who  had  started  on  the  upward  way 
to  the  struggle  between  light  and  darkness  that  such  a 
change  must  inevitably  bring. 

The  remaining  days  in  port  were  all  too  quickly 
passed  by  the  Asteroid's  crew.  With  the  captain  now 
taking  the  lead  in  all  their  efforts  to  acquaint  them- 
selves more  perfectly  with  the  way  of  life,  tho.se  who 
had  entered  upon  that  way  were  filled  with  self-con- 
demnation that  they  had  not  begun  before.  It  all 
seemed  so  easy  and  so  delightful.  But  they  did  not 
realize  how  highly  favoured  they  were  in  having  so 
large  a  majority  on  board  on  the  Lord's  side.  To 
those  who  had  not,  as  they  put  it,  gone  off  their  heads 
the  state  of  things  was  anything  but  satisfactory.  The 
four  foremast  hands  found  themselves  completely  iso- 
lated by  their  own  act,  since  they  could  not,  would  not, 

197 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

take  part  in  any  of  the  religious  exercises  of  their 
shipmates,  and  because  of  their  inferior  numbers  they 
were  afraid  to  take  any  steps  to  show  their  disapproval 
of  such  proceedings.  Then  there  were  the  two  officers, 
Messrs.  Carroll  and  Kirton,  the  apprentices,  the  sail- 
maker  and  cook,  all  of  whom  were  anything  but  com- 
fortable under  the  new  system.  Over  and  over  again 
they  murmured  among  themselves :  "  A  little  of  this 
kind  of  thing's  all  very  well,  but  this  is  carryin'  mat- 
ters too  far."  But  all  their  secret  grumbling  made  no 
difference.  That  they  steeled  their  hearts  against  the 
splendid  influences  they  saw  at  work  around  them, 
derided  their  beneficent  effects  upon  the  men  they  had 
known  as  good-for-nothing  rascals,  only  did  them- 
selves harm,  and  had  not  the  least  influence  towards 
hindering  or  undoing  what  was  being  done. 

And  as  if  God  was  fitting,  by  the  beautiful  halcyon 
season  he  was  giving  all  these  new-born  babes  in 
Christ,  each  and  all  of  them  for  some  great  work  by- 
and-bye,  the  elements  themselves  seemed  to  favour 
them.  Never,  said  Captain  Vaughan,  had  such  a  sum- 
mer voyage  been  made  to  the  East  Indies  in  all  his 
long  experience.  Bright  skies,  fair  winds,  work  going 
on  almost  automatically.  Even  Mr.  Carroll,  much  as 
he  grumbled  in  secret  against  the  over-godliness  of 
nearly  all  hands,  was  fain  to  admit  that  at  present  it 
seemed  as  if  the  godly  ones  were  being  justified  by 
their  works.  For  most  men  must  see  material  benefits 
accruing  from  the  service  of  God,  or  they  will  not 
believe.  But  when  the  ship  arrived  off  the  pitch  of  the 
Cape,  Larry  Doolan,  who,  it  was  noticed,  had  been 
getting  very  quiet  and  delicate-looking  for  some  time 
past,  suddenly  took  to  his  bed,  and  sent  word  aft  that 
he  was  sorry  for  it,  but  he  could  no  longer  do  his 

198 


Calcutta  and  Home 

duty  because  he  felt  "  all  gone  "  inside.  True  to  his 
dim  belief,  he  had  said  no  word  about  the  way  in 
which  the  proceedings  in  Calcutta  and  since  had 
affected  him,  but  he  had  listened  to  every  prayer,  every 
reading  of  the  Word,  and  his  conduct  had  been  abso- 
lutely without  reproach.  As  soon  as  Captain  Vaughan 
heard  of  his  illness,  he  at  once  had  him  brought  aft 
into  a  state-room  which  was  prepared  for  him,  and 
there  he  nursed  him  maternally,  while  Saul  (whose  life 
was  now  one  uninterrupted  circle  of  peace)  visited  him 
as  often  as  his  duties  would  permit. 

The  next  Sunday  morning,  the  ship  having  got 
round  the  Cape,  the  skipper  came  in  and  told  his  pa- 
tient in  true  sailor  fashion  that  "  at  last  they  were  home- 
ward bound."  And  Larry,  turning  his  tired  head 
languidly  towards  the  speaker,  replied  :  "  Thankye,  sir, 
but  I'm  homeward  bound  be  meself,  an'  I'll  git  there 
quicker  'n  you  will."  His  meaning  could  not  be  mis- 
taken, and  Captain  Vaughan,  touched  to  the  quick,  re- 
plied :  "  Don't  talk  like  that,  Larry ;  we'll  all  pray  for 
ye  this  mornin' ;  we'll  pray  right  up  that  God'll  spare 
ye  for  many  years  yet.  There's  a  great  deal  for  you 
to  do  on  the  new  lines  of  serving  God  while  you're 
serving  men,  you  know,  an'  we  can't  spare  you." 
There  was  a  last  flash  of  energy  in  Larry's  answer: 
"  Ye  mustn't  do  ut,  sir ;  ye  mustn't  do  ut.  It's  God's 
great  mercy  t'  me.  I'm  as  wake  as  wather,  an'  he 
knows  ut ;  I  haven't  a  friend  on  airth,  nor  anny  place 
I  can  call  a  home,  an'  he  knows  that  too.  An'  I've 
been  a-layin'  here  askin'  him  if  in  his  great  love  for  a 
poor  crathur  like  me  he'll  take  me  out  of  it  all.  There's 
some  'at  could  be  of  service  to  him,  like  that  graand 
bhoy  th'  bo'sun,  but  I'm  not  wan  o'  thim,  and  he, 
blessed  be  his  howly  name  foriver,  he  knows  ut.  I'm 
J4  199 


The   Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

not  a  bit  o'  good  here,  but  I'll  maybe  alther  in  th' 
next  worrld  whin  he  gits  a  closer  howld  on  me,  or 
I  can  get  closer  t'  him.  No,  sor,  don't  ye  pray  that 
I  may  be  shpared  for  anny  more  ov  this  worrld ;  I've 
had  all  I  want  av  ut ;  but  pray,  av  ye  plaze,  that  I  may 
have  a  good  time  goin'  across.  God  bless  ye  all.  I'm 
glad  I  lived  t'  come  across  th'  ship  an'  all  av  yez.  It's 
ben  a  good  time  whoile  ut  lasted,  but  I  know  I'd  do 
somethin'  to  make  me  a  dishgrace  to  all  of  yez  if  I 
shtopped  here,  an'  I'm  hungry  t'  be  gone." 

For  all  answer  the  skipper  pressed  his  hand  and 
hurried  on  deck,  going  straight  to  Saul's  berth  and 
asking  him  to  come  aft  and  see  the  sick  man.  I  dare 
not  tell  you  what  passed  between  them,  more  espe- 
cially as  I  feel  that  you  need  a  little  respite  from  these 
high  matters,  but  I  may  say  that  Saul  came  out  of  the 
saloon  with  the  shining  face  as  of  one  who  had  been 
so  close  to  the  gates  as  to  catch  some  reflection  of  the 
glory  streaming  through.  That  morning's  service  was 
a  most  memorable  one  to  all  there.  According  to  Lar- 
ry's request  no  prayers  were  put  up  for  his  recovery, 
but  very  many  for  his  abundant  entrance,  and  when 
the  skipper  went  to  see  him  at  the  close  of  the  service 
he  was  no  longer  there ;  only  the  perishable  tabernacle 
he  had  left  behind,  which  bore  upon  its  face  the  im- 
print of  a  smile  of  complete  satisfaction.  They  buried 
the  clay  in  the  grandest  of  all  graves  that  evening,  and 
as  it  sank  beneath  the  bright  blue  waves  every  one 
of  those  who  had  held  out  so  long  and  sullenly  against 
the  sweet  influences  brought  to  bear  upon  them, 
yielded  unconditionally  and  announced  that  from 
henceforth  they  too  would  serve  the  best  of  all  mas- 
ters and  friends,  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ. 

The  record  of  that  passage  thereafter  would  be  for 
200 


Calcutta  and  Home 

some  very  monotonous  reading.  Happy  is  the  nation 
that  has  no  history,  says  the  proverb,  and  its  truth  may 
be  extended  to  the  ship  whose  even,  placid  course  of 
duty  and  progress  does  not  lend  itself  to  lurid  descrip- 
tions of  mutiny,  murder,  fire,  or  shipwreck.  These 
things  make  startling  reading,  no  doubt,  but  who 
among  us  is  there  that  would  not  rather  see  our  lives 
free  from  such  painful  catastrophes ;  that  would  not 
rather  see  the  wheels  of  life  revolve  in  orderly  fashion 
than  be  continually  breaking  down  or  running  furi- 
ously ungovernable,  and  spreading  devastation  around  ? 
Few  indeed,  and  so  thought  the  crew  of  the  Asteroid. 
Instead  of  their  former  symposia  of  debauchery,  of 
hardly  earned  pay-days  wasted  in  a  few  hours,  of  long 
months  of  suffering  from  disease,  of  brutality  such  as 
men  ashore  speak  of  with  bated  breath,  they  sat  in 
their  night-watches  discussing  the  glories  of  sea  and 
sky,  the  mercies  of  God  to  his  children,  the  good  they 
would  do  in  the  future  if  spared.  And,  perhaps  sweet- 
est of  all,  there  were  several  of  them  who  recalled 
vividly  that  in  distant  country  homes  old  parents 
whom  they  had  not  seen  for  many  years,  and  whose 
eyes  had  not  all  that  time  been  cheered  by  a  written 
line  from  them,  would  be  glad  beyond  measure  to  see 
them,  and  they  would,  God  helping  them,  surely  go 
home.  And  Saul,  as  the  good  ship  drew  daily  nearer 
and  nearer  her  port,  found  himself  wistfully  wonder- 
ing how  Jemmy  and  the  brethren  had  been  faring  in 
the  little  mission,  for  which  he  had  never  forgotten  to 
pray  with  all  his  heart  almost  without  ceasing  since  he 
had  left.  Not  one  line  had  reached  him  of  their  wel- 
fare, but  his  hopes  were  high,  his  faith  calmly  secure. 


201 


CHAPTER  XIX 

CLOUDS   AND    SUNSHINE 

DIFFICULT  indeed  it  has  been  to  return  from  the 
triumphant  progress  of  God's  work  on  board  the  Aste- 
roid to  the  accumulating  troubles  of  the  apostles  at 
Wren  Lane.  But  it  is  always  salutary  to  remember  that 
the  Way  has  the  Valley  of  Humiliation  as  well  as  the 
Delectable  Mountains,  and  especially  to  notice  how  even 
in  the  most  earnest  Christian  work  communities  as  well 
as  individuals  have  their  seasons  of  depression,  dull- 
ness, and  even  disaster.  Such  a  season  had  now  appar- 
ently set  in  for  the  Wren  Lane  Mission.  The  loss  of 
the  money  was  a  great  blow  to  so  poor  a  gathering 
for  the  reasons  before  given ;  but  worse  than  even  the 
loss  of  the  money  was  the  suspicion,  which  would  not 
be  stifled,  although  none  of  them  expressed  it,  that 
one  of  their  number  was  the  thief.  Then,  on  the 
Tuesday  night  after  the  loss  Brother  Jenkins  turned 
up  most  unexpectedly,  and  as  soon  as  ever  Jemmy  had 
put  up  the  opening  prayer,  he  bounced  to  his  feet  and 
excitedly  demanded  to  know  the  name  of  the  brother 
who  had  suggested  his  resigning  the  treasurership. 
Evidently  labouring  under  an  absurdly  exaggerated 
sense  of  grievance,  he  poured  forth  a  multitude  of  bit- 
ter words,  culminating  in  his  flinging  his  book,  vouch- 
ers, and  money  on  the  table,  and  dramatically  refus- 
ing to  have  anything  more  to  do  with  the  mission  at 

202 


Clouds  and  Sunshine 

all.  In  vain  did  Brother  Salmon  endeavour  to  soothe 
him;  in  vain  did  Jemmy,  taking  all  the  responsibility 
of  having  hinted  at  his  resignation  first,  point  out  to 
him,  in  the  most  lovable  way,  how  impossible  it  was 
for  them  to  go  on  with  a  treasurer  who  only  came  on 
an  average  once  in  three  weeks.  All  would  not  do. 
There  are  some  people  to  whom  the  soft  answer  that 
turneth  away  wrath  does  not  seem  to  apply.  The  more 
gentle,  the  tenderer  the  appeal  made  to  them  not  to  be 
angry  or  unreasonable,  the  fiercer  they  fulminate,  until, 
if  it  happens  that  the  appellant  loses  his  temper  and 
storms  in  his  turn,  they  curiously  enough  quiet  down, 
and  often  assume  quite  a  bewildered  air  of  injured 
innocence,  as  if  they  were  puzzled  beyond  measure  to 
know  why  they  should  be  so  severely  taken  to  task. 

However,  in  Jenkins's  case  it  was  evident  that  he 
considered  his  grievance  so  substantial  that  nothing 
would  appease  him,  and  after  repeated  efforts,  shared 
by  all  except  Skipper  Stevens,  the  attempt  was  given 
up.  Then,  and  not  until  then,  did  that  old  sea-dog 
say  a  word  that  clinched  matters.  "  Looky  here, 
Brother  Jenkins,"  he  said,  "  it's  not  a  bit  o'  good  your 
puttin'  on  frills  over  this  matter.  I  seen  at  the  outset 
of  to-night's  meetin'  that  you'd  made  up  yer  mind  t' 
leave  us,  and  all  the  appeals  'at  was  made  t'  you  only 
tickled  yer  vanity.  You  an'  Jimson's  a  pair,  and  I 
think  the  mission  well  rid  of  ye.  But  before  you  go 
let's  have  a  look  at  yer  book."  There  was  a  dead  si- 
lence as  Brother  Stevens  adjusted  his  spectacles  and 
calmly  lifted  the  uppermost  document.  One  by  one 
he  looked  at  them,  and  then,  opening  the  book,  essayed 
to  follow  up  their  entry  there  and  find,  if  possible,  how 
the  finances  of  the  mission  stood.  But  it  was  impos- 
sible. Between  Jenkins's  incapacity  and  neglect  there 

203 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

was  a  hopeless  muddle  out  of  which  none  of  them 
were  able  to  find  what  the  condition  of  things  real- 
ly was. 

But  Jemmy  came  to  the  rescue.  In  his  penny 
memorandum  book  he  had  entered,  as  of  old,  the  sums 
received  and  paid,  more  as  a  matter  of  habit  than  with 
any  idea  of  checking  the  treasurer.  Now,  as  it  turned 
out,  his  action  had  saved  the  mission  from  the  very  bad 
position  of  not  knowing  how  the  accounts  stood,  for 
in  his  little  book  was  a  perfectly  clear  and  lucid  state- 
ment of  affairs.  This  was  the  signal  for  Jenkins  to 
gather  up  his  documents,  and  gabbling  fiercely  to  no 
one  in  particular  about  the  condition  of  things  that  he 
foresaw  overshadowing  the  mission,  he  went  out  into 
the  night  without  saying  a  word  of  farewell.  And  who 
should  rise  to  console  the  grief-stricken  brethren  but 
Bill  Harrop.  "  Brevren,"  he  said,  "  don't  take  this  'ere 
fing  so  much  t'  'eart.  It  is  'ard,  o'  corse,  t'  see  a  bruv- 
ver  leave  like  that,  'specially  one  wot's  ben  a-workin' 
wiv  yer  for  a  long  time.  Pore  chap,  Vll  be  the  loser. 
'E's  gone  aht  inter  the  dark  wot  I  just  come  in  from, 
an'  gone  knowin'  wot  it  is  to  'ave  the  light.  Gord  'elp 
'im,  I  says.  But  don't  let's  be  discouraged.  We  ain't 
none  of  us  puffick,  ain't  likely  ter  be  in  this  world, 
I  'spose,  an'  any  of  erse  might  backslide.  That  must 
make  the  backsliders'  brevren  sorry,  but  I  'umbly  fink 
it  orter  make  'em  cling  closer  t'  the  Lord,  wot  never 
disappoints  us  or  can  be  anyfink  else  but  the  Lord  ov 
Righteousness.  Fur  my  part,  though  Gawd  ferbid  'at 
sech  a  fing  should  'appen,  if  every  one  of  yer  wos  ter 
turn  out  wrong  uns  ter-morrer  it  wouldn't  make  no 
difference  ter  my  faith,  corse  I  ain't  dependin'  on  yore 
keepin'  fai'ful,  but  on  the  Master  wot  saved  me.  Less 
pray  fer  pore  Jenkins  wiv  all  ahr  'arts.  'E'll  need  ahr 

204 


Clouds  and  Sunshine 

pray'rs,  'im  and  pore  Jimson  will,  afore  they  finds  their 
way  back  agen." 

But,  as  was  only  natural  and  to  be  expected,  a  deep 
air  of  despondency  was  generally  worn,  and  when  the 
meeting  broke  up,  after  it  had  been  agreed  to  com- 
mission Jemmy  to  pay  all  the  outstanding  liabilities 
as  far  as  the  cash  in  hand  went  first  thing  in  the  morn- 
ing, each  went  his  or  her  way  heavily,  especially  those 
who  had  made  themselves  liable  as  trustees  for  all  the 
payments  due  from  the  mission.  Perhaps  the  most 
cast  down  was  Jemmy  himself.  He  sighed  heavily  as 
he  dropped  the  money  into  his  trousers  pocket,  and 
quite  unconsciously  murmured :  "  If  Saul  was  only 
back  agen !  "  Almost  instantly  he  was  conscience- 
stricken,  and  as  he  trotted  along  homeward  he  said: 
"  Dear  Lord,  fergive  me  fer  clingin'  more  t'  the  cree- 
chur  than  the  Creator.  I  didn't  mean  t'  do  it,  Lord. 
I  'ave  realized  yore  presence  wonderful,  an'  I  can  tork 
t'  ye  as  I  can't  even  tork  t'  Saul,  but  if  I  could  only 
touch  yer,  shake  hands  wiv  yer  as  I  can  wiv  Saul,  I 
could  face  anyfink.  That  carn't  be,  of  course,  Lord, 
but  do  make  it  up  t'  me,  Lord.  Make  me  strong  t' 
face  trouble,  make  me  feel  thy  presence  wiv  me  all 
the  time,  more  realler  than  anybody  else's,  won't  yer 
please,  dear  Jesus?  " 

His  last  ejaculation  brought  him  to  his  own  door. 
Standing  just  within  its  dark  entry  was  his  wife.  As 
soon  as  she  caught  sight  of  him  she  said  sarcastically : 
"  Oh,  you  'ave  come  'ome,  'ave  yer.  Some  o'  these 
nights  you'll  come  'ome  an'  fine  th'  'ole  shoot  of  us 
aht  in  the  gutter.  D'ye  know  we  ain't  paid  no  rent  fur 
nigh  on  three  weeks?  D'ye  know  the  landlord's  ben 
rahnd  'ere  t'-night  a-swearin'  'at  'e'll  put  th'  bums  in 
ter-morrer?  Not  you.  You  lives  in  a  little  world  o' 

205 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

yer  own,  full  o'  meetin's  an'  preachin's,  an'  makin* 
believe  yore  a  lot  o'  saints  rolled  up  inter  one.  But 
some  on  us  'as  got  ter  do  th'  worryin'  an'  schemin'  an' 
contrivin',  an'  if  we  ain't  saints  it's  no  fault  of  ourn. 
Look  'ere,  if  yore  Gord's  wot  you  say  'e  is,  w'y  don't 
'e  pay  yer  rent,  give  yer  pore  kids  enough  t'  eat,  an', 

an' "  But  Mrs.  Maskery  could  say  no  more.  Poor 

woman,  she  was  greatly  to  be  pitied.  Another  little 
Maskery  was  nearly  due,  and  that  condition  of  body 
often  makes  of  the  most  amiable  of  women  a  person 
whose  company  is  rather  to  be  dreaded,  even  where 
everything  is  on  hand  that  can  be  wished  for.  Where, 
however,  there  is  superadded  the  cares  of  such  a  house- 
hold as  the  Maskerys'  coupled  with  an  utter  absence 
of  all  change  of  scene,  any  outlook  upon  the  beauties 
of  life,  the  woman's  lot  who  has  to  support  such  a 
burden  is  a  hard  one  indeed. 

I  often  wonder  whether  the  people  who  write  what 
are  known  as  "  Society  "  novels  and  "  Society  "  plays 
have  any  idea  of  the  thousands  of  unseen  (save  by 
God)  tragedies  that  are  dimly  being  enacted  in  the 
lives  of  our  respectable  poor.  Surely  if  they  had 
(these  writers),  they  would  for  very  shame's  sake  de- 
sist from  depicting  the  false  and  shoddy  scenes  of  sen- 
timent and  so-called  love,  where  inane  youths  and 
lazy,  well-fed  young  women  from  sheer  lack  of  whole- 
some occupation  conspire  together  to  make  life  one 
hideous  farce,  generally  degenerating  into  scarcely  less 
hideous  crime.  And  they  call  these  love  stories. 

Poor  Jemmy,  listening  with  a  feeling  not  far  re- 
moved from  guilt  to  the  upbraidings  of  his  over- 
wrought wife,  suddenly  realized  that  in  his  pocket 
lay  the  means  of  cutting  himself  free  from  this  awful 
entanglement  of  financial  difficulty.  Why  shouldn't 

206 


Clouds  and  Sunshine 

he  borrow  the  money  for  a  day  or  two  until  he  could 
have  time  to  look  about  him?  True,  there  was  no 
immediate  prospect  of  his  earning  much,  but  God  was 
good ;  something  might  happen.  Oh,  it  couldn't  be 
wrong,  under  such  conditions,  to  borrow  a  sum  from 
the  fund  in  his  possession  sufficient  to  pay  the  landlord 
and  save  his  family  from  that  dread  visitant,  the 
broker's  man !  Without  thinking  any  more  about  it, 
having  entertained  the  insidious  idea  for  a  few  seconds, 
he  turned  to  his  weeping  helpmate  and  said :  "  Orl  rite, 
ole  dear,  we  shall  get  aht  o'  this  bother.  I  got  a  frend 
'11  see  me  through.  I  know  'e  will,  cause  'e  told  me 
so.  The  money  fur  the  rent's  as  good  as  in  me  pocket. 
Nah,  don't  you  fret  another  minute,  I  tell  ye.  I'll  just 
go  aht  an'  see  'im  in  th'  mornin',  an'  then  I'll  come 
'ome  an'  give  ye  th'  twenty-seven  bob  for  ole  Smith. 
Don't  worry,  there's  a  dear.  Say,  c'd  y'  eat  a  bit  o' 
fish.  If  ye  could  I'll  run  roun'  t'  Pocock's  an'  git  a 
bit.  I'm  'ungry,  an'  I  make  no  daht  you  are.  Wot 
d'ye  say?" 

"  W'y,  of  course  I'm  'ungry,"  she  replied  grum- 
blingly ;  "  ain't  we  all  'ungry  gen'ly  ?  We  gits  the 
edge  took  orf  our  'unger  nah  an'  then,  but  we're  never 
what  you  may  call  fair  full.  Yus,  go  an  git  some  fish, 
skate  if  they  got  it,  an'  some  taters.  Make  'aste." 

Jemmy  flew,  as  much  to  escape  his  accusing  con- 
science as  to  be  swift  in  his  errand.  For  the  bitter 
truth  is  that  he  had  not  one  penny  of  his  own.  But 
as  he  had  suddenly  yielded  mentally  to  the  tempta- 
tion to  use  the  mission  money  for  his  own  immediate 
necessities  in  the  matter  of  rent,  he  felt  an  extraordi- 
nary desire  to  take  the  first  step  in  the  wrong  direc- 
tion, even  though  it  was  in  so  small  a  matter  as  six 
pennyworth  of  fried  fish  and  potatoes.  While  he  stood 

207 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

at  the  counter  of  the  fish  shop  awaiting  his  turn,  his 
conscience  (uneasy,  sensitive  member)  gave  him  much 
trouble.  But  he  silenced  it  by  the  world-old  expedient 
of  numbing  his  receptive  faculties.  It  is  wonderful 
what  a  man  or  woman  may  do  in  that  direction  when 
once  they  have  made  up  their  minds  not  to  resist 
temptation.  It  was  a  lit  of  a  struggle,  though,  and 
much  relieved  was  Jemmy  when  the  greasy,  hot, 
newspaper  -  wrapped  parcel  was  handed  over  to 
him. 

Now,  according  to  the  rules  of  fiction,  he  should 
have  been  unable  to  eat  the  food  purchased  by  con- 
structive dishonesty.  He  should  have  been  seized  with 
remorse  and  pushed  the  fish  away  from  him,  to  the 
great  astonishment  of  his  wife.  Truth,  however,  com- 
pels me  to  state  that  so  far  from  that  being  the  case, 
Jemmy  devoured  his  share  with  the  keenest  relish,  en- 
tirely dispensing  with  knife  and  fork,  champing  up 
crisped  bones  and  potatoes,  almost  reduced  to  a  cinder, 
in  vigorous  fashion,  and  when,  having  mopped  up  the 
last  drop  of  vinegar  in  his  plate  with  his  bread,  he  at 
last  came  to  the  conclusion  that  he  had  supped  as  well 
as  ever  he  had  in  his  life,  he  said  in  the  comfortable 
tones  of  a  man  who  cares  not  what  the  morrow  may 
have  in  store  for  him :  "  Well,  ole  dear,  that  tvas  a  nice 
bit  o'  fish,  wasn't  it  ?  I  don't  like  the  way  Pocock  goes 
on,  but  'e  do  sell  good  grub  now,  don't  'e  ?  " 

"  Good  enough,"  answered  his  wife.  "  I  don't  want 
no  better.  An'  nah  let's  get  t'  bed,  an'  mine  you  don't 
forget  to  go  t'  yore  friend  in  the  mornin'  bright  an' 
early.  If  you  don't,  ole  Smith  '11  'ave  all  our  sticks 
carted  off  afore  ten  o'clock;  I  feel  shore  of  it." 

"  All  right,  dear,"  replied  Jemmy.  "  I  ain't  likely  t' 
fergit  it."  And  off  he  went  upstairs  to  bed.  Then 

208 


Clouds  and  Sunshine 

came  another  nasty  jarring  note.  How  could  he  pray? 
He  was  contemplating  an  act  of  dishonesty.  Nay,  he 
had  already  been  dishonest.  That  comfortable  feeling 
which  gave  him  so  much  pleasure  was  the  result  of 
spending  sixpence  of  the  mission  money.  And  how 
could  he  ask  the  Father's  blessing  on  his  sleep  when  he 
knew  that  he  was  determined  to  do  wrong.  Ah,  well, 
man  is  an  adaptable  creature,  and  Jemmy  was  just  an 
ordinary  man.  He  could  not  face  the  trouble  his  wife 
had  foreshadowed ;  he  had  wrestled  with  and  over- 
thrown his  legitimate  scruples  about  using  what  did 
not  belong  to  him,  and  now  he  went  a  step  further 
and  got  into  bed  without  offering  his  tribute  of  praise 
and  thanksgiving  to  the  Lord  God  Almighty  for  all 
his  love  and  care.  And  this  tremendous  omission  was 
all  on  account  of  twenty-eight  shillings.  Think  of  it, 
company  promoters  who  share  plunder  reckoned  by 
millions,  and  for  a  pretence  make  long  prayers,  and 
wonder  at  the  strange  mind-workings  of  the  lower 
classes ! 

Poor  Mrs.  Maskery  woke  very  early,  so  terrible  had 
been  the  pressure  upon  her  nerves.  For  of  all  the 
calamities  which  threaten  the  honourable  poor  none 
is  greater  than  that  of  being  sold  up — the  few  bits  of 
furniture  gathered  painfully  piece  by  piece  through 
many  strenuous  years  being  rudely  snatched  away, 
leaving  the  humble  home  desolate.  And  she  had 
hardly  realized  the  truth  of  what  her  husband  had  told 
her  overnight — that  he  had  a  friend  who  would  certain- 
ly see  them  through ;  at  any  rate  she  had  no  idea  that 
the  friend  of  whom  he  spoke  was  at  the  time  of  speak- 
ing in  his  pocket.  Therefore  she  woke  early,  and  after 
a  restless  hour  aroused  her  deeply  sleeping  husband 
with  the  remark  that  by  the  time  he  had  washed, 

209 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

dressed,  and  had  a  bit  of  breakfast,  it  would  be  late 
enough  for  him  to  see  his  friend. 

Poor  Jemmy !  Sadly  and  slowly  he  realized  to  what 
he  was  pledged.  Possibilities  of  repaying  what  he  was 
about  to  borrow  did  not  seem  quite  so  plentiful  as  they 
did  on  the  previous  night,  and  worse  still,  there  was 
the  persistent  questioning  of  conscience.  So  that  he 
was  glad  to  get  out  of  the  house  into  the  street,  al- 
though it  was  still  much  too  early  for  him  to  seek  the 
landlord.  But,  having  once  passed  beyond  the  con- 
fines of  Lupin  Street,  his  steps  turned  almost  auto- 
matically towards  the  Hall  as  a  place  of  refuge  where 
he  might  spend  the  time  at  his  disposal  in  unmo- 
lested meditation.  And  then  a  bright  thought  oc- 
curred to  him.  Might  not  the  Lord  at  this  eleventh 
hour  see  fit  to  work  a  miracle  so  that  he  should  be 
saved  from  the  dreadful  necessity  which  lay  before 
him  ?  He  would  pray  as  he  never  prayed  before ; 
surely  God  would  hear  him  once  more.  The  thought 
was  so  inspiring  that  he  broke  into  a  trot,  and  soon 
reached  the  Hall  door.  With  trembling  fingers  he  un- 
locked it  and  went  in,  the  solemnity  of  the  quiet  place 
falling  soothingly  upon  his  fretted  nerves,  until  sud- 
denly, with  an  accelerated  heart-beat,  he  caught  sight 
of  a  man's  body  lying  in  an  unnatural  position  on  the 
floor  in  the  middle  of  the  Hall. 

Springing  forward,  Jemmy  laid  hold  of  the  body, 
which  emitted  a  low  moan  of  pain  as  he  turned  it  over. 
In  the  strengthening  light  its  face  became  visible,  and 
Jemmy  saw  that  it  was  the  latest  convert,  Jemmy  Pat- 
erson,  the  Terror  of  Rotherhithe.  Like  a  flash  all 
sorts  of  trifling  evidential  links  connected  themselves 
up,  and  Jemmy  realized  that  this  was  the  thief  that  had 
broken  in  before  and  had  robbed  the  mission  of  its 

210 


Clouds  and  Sunshine 

sorely  needed  funds.  But  he  had  no  time  to  think  of 
that  now.  The  man  was  evidently  most  seriously  hurt, 
one  of  his  legs  being  doubled  under  him  in  such  a  way 
as  showed  that  it  must  be  badly  broken.  So  Jemmy 
rushed  to  the  door,  and  darting  out  in  the  lane,  sought 
the  nearest  policeman,  telling  him  the  story  and  beg- 
ging him  to  bring  an  ambulance  at  once,  while  he 
(Jemmy)  returned  to  look  after  the  poor  wretch  until 
the  help  should  be  forthcoming.  When  he  got  back 
he  found  the  man  still  insensible,  except  that  when 
Jemmy  tried  to  move  him  a  low  sound  of  pain  was 
heard.  It  was  evident,  from  the  fact  of  the  skylight 
overhead  being  open,  how  he  had  got  in,  but  not  so 
easy  to  understand  how  he  could  have  been  so  foolish 
as  to  imagine  that  he  would  find  more  spoil,  assuming 
that  he  had  been  the  original  robber. 

These  speculations  Jemmy  dismissed  at  once  as  be- 
yond him ;  and,  kneeling  by  the  side  of  the  silent  figure, 
offered  up  a  fervent  prayer  that  his  life  might  be  spared 
for  repentance, 'also  that  the  temptation  assailing  him- 
self might  by  God's  infinite  grace  be  removed.  He 
had  only  just  risen  from  his  knees  when  the  door 
opened,  and  in  tramped  the  two  policemen  bearing  the 
ambulance.  Very  quickly  and  deftly  they  raised  the 
poor  wretch  and  placed  him  as  comfortably  as  might 
be ;  then,  curtly  telling  Jemmy  to  follow,  they  bore  the 
body  out  of  the  Hall,  and  set  off  towards  the  station. 
Upon  arrival  the  presiding  inspector  questioned  Jem- 
my keenly,  while  the  police  surgeon  examined  the 
poor,  broken  wretch.  And  when  Jemmy's  halting  re- 
plies gave  rise  to  a  suspicion  that  his  kindliness  wanted 
to  shield  the  suspect  from  the  legal  consequences  of 
his  act,  the  inspector,  with  a  merry  twinkle  in  his  eye 
belying  the  sternness  of  his  words,  warned  Jemmy 

211 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

that  it  would  be  a  serious  offence  against  the  law  to 
endeavour  to  protect  a  criminal  in  any  way.  "  I  know 
all  about  that  money  you  lost  from  the  mission  a  while 
back.  You  thought  you  kep'  it  pretty  quiet,  of  course, 
but  I  know  all  about  it,  an'  how  much  it  was,  an'  I've 
had  a  man  givin'  an  eye  to  your  place  lately.  He'll 
be  in  considerable  trouble  this  mornin'  too,  'cause  I 
sh'll  want  to  know  how  it  was  he  never  see  this  man 
a-clim'in'  up  on  the  roof  or  heard  'im  fall.  But  that 
don't  matter  to  you.  If  you  want  to  do  this  joker  any 
good  you'll  'ave  t'  do  it  before  the  magistrate.  I'm 
a-goin'  to  do  my  best  to  get  'im  put  away  fur  a  stretch 
or  two.  I  can  do  without  him  in  my  district  very 
pleasantly,  I  give  ye  my  word.  Now  run  along,  Jem- 
my, like  a  good  little  man." 

And  Jemmy  did  run  along,  for  he  realized  with  a 
pang  that  it  was  getting  late,  and  whatever  should  he 
do  if  the  landlord  had  already  put  the  machinery  of 
the  law  in  motion.  The  thought  made  him  shudder. 
Putting  on  his  best  speed,  he  reached  the  landlord's 
house  within  ten  minutes,  although  it  was  nearly  a  mile 
distant,  and  found  him  at  breakfast.  Poor1  Jemmy 
waited  in  the  hall  like  a  mendicant  until  the  petty  po- 
tentate came  out,  not  knowing  at  all  what  plea  he 
should  put  forward,  with  nerves  all  a-twitch,  but  still 
with  a  most  curious  freedom  from  apprehension  as  to 
the  result  of  this  meeting. 

"  Well,  Mr.  Maskery,"  said  the  landlord,  coming 
out  of  the  kitchen  with  his  mouth  full,  "  you're  early. 
Come  about  that  overdue  rent,  I  s'pose  ?  " 

"  Yessir,  I  'ave,"  replied  Jemmy.  "  My  wife  tole 
me  you  was  a-goin'  to  put  th'  brokers  in  early  's  morn- 
in', an'  a-course  that  fetched  me  out  mighty  quick." 

"  Oh,  well,  Jemmy,"  the  landlord  resumed  sooth- 
212 


Clouds  and  Sunshine 

ingly,  "  y'  needn't  be  alarmed.  A  friend  o'  yourn — I 
ain't  at  liberty  t'  mention  'is  name — 'as  paid  the  rent 
owin'.  But  you  must  try  an'  keep  yer  rent  paid  up 
every  week.  I  alwus  say  that  a  man  livin'  in  a  weekly 
'ouse,  if  'e  can't  pay  one  week's  rent  'tain't  likely  'e 
can  pay  two,  and  p'raps  I  was  a  bit  soft  t'  let  ye  run 
as  long-  as  I  did.  It's  all  right  nah,  though,  an'  I'm 
sure  7  'ope  you'll  be  able  t'  go  along  straight  after  this. 
Good-mornin'." 

To  say  that  Jemmy  was  stunned  by  the  news  thus 
casually  conveyed  to  him  would  be  to  use  but  a  very 
feeble  figure  of  speech.  He  walked  down  the  street 
like  a  man  in  a  dream,  trying  to  realize  what  the  good 
news  really  meant  to  him.  His  prayers  answered,  his 
contemplated  sin  left  uncommitted,  his  burden  re- 
moved. And  yet  (a  fact  which  made  him  wonder  dully 
what  the  cause  of  it  might  be)  he  did  not  feel  ecstati- 
cally thankful.  Ah,  what  a  difference  there  is  in  one's 
feelings  just  before  relief  comes  compared  with  the 
feelings  just  after!  I  suppose  it  is  useless  to  try  and 
explain  this  strange  thing;  but  I  think  that  all  Chris- 
tians who  in  their  dire  need  have  called  upon  God  and 
been  delivered  will  understand  and  appreciate  what  I 
mean.  And  I  know  that  everybody  who  has  ever  been 
in  a  great  difficulty  and  been  suddenly  helped  out  of 
it  will  also  remember  how  very  poor  and  mean  their 
gratitude  seemed  to  be,  as  compared  with  what  they 
felt  it  would  be,  when  the  trouble  that  the  help  received 
averted  was  hanging  over  their  heads.  Before  I  close 
this  paragraph  I  must  tell  the  reader  what  Jemmy 
never  knew — viz.,  that  the  helping  hand  extended  at 
the  right  moment  was  that  of  the  broker.  Never  a 
hard  man,  he  had  been  driven  into  the  unthankful  busi- 
ness he  pursued  much  against  his  will,  but  much  to 

213 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

the  benefit  of  many  a  poor  creature  whose  chattels  he 
had  been  compelled  to  seize  in  the  way  of  business. 
He  knew  Jemmy  well  and  admired  him,  but  had  never 
until  quite  recently  attended  his  meetings  on  the 
"  Waste."  And  the  last  time  he  did  so  he  was  almost 
persuaded  to  avow  himself  a  convert,  but  resisted  the 
call  and  had  been  miserable  ever  since.  When,  there- 
fore, Jemmy's  landlord  gave  him  the  commission  to 
seize  his  tenant's  belongings  in  satisfaction  of  his  legal 
claim,  the  broker  felt  that  it  was  a  heaven-sent  oppor- 
tunity to  relieve  his  mind  by  doing  something — by 
gratifying  that  primitive  desire  of  all  mankind  when 
torn  by  spiritual  fears — so  he  readily  and  gladly  paid 
the  amount  due,  only  stipulating  that  Jemmy  should 
never  be  told  who  his  benefactor  was. 

Slowly  and  meditatively  Jemmy  made  his  way  to 
the  Hall,  only  once  stopping  by  the  way  to  pick  up  a 
shilling  that  lay  shining  on  the  pathway  before  him, 
and  thinking,  in  a  misty  manner,  that  now  he  could  not 
only  replace  the  sixpence  borrowed  from  the  mission 
funds  last  night,  but  that  he  was  sixpence  to  the  good. 
He  entered  the  Hall,  flung  himself  on  his  knees,  and 
thanked  God  for  his  deliverance,  sent  so  speedily,  as 
well  as  he  was  able.  But  he  was  mightily  disturbed  at 
what  he  felt  was  his  want  of  fervour,  and  after  a  short 
season  of  trying  to  realize  how  grateful  he  ought  to  be, 
hurried  home  and  told  the  joyful  news  to  his  wife,  sup- 
pressing, however,  the  main  details  because  he  felt 
that  their  unfolding  might  lead  to  inconvenient  cross- 
examination,  in  which  Mrs.  Maskery  was  an  adept. 

There  are  sure  to  be  some  sceptical  people  reading 
this  who  will  consider  that  I  have  been  drawing  upon 
my  invention  for  the  details  of  my  story.  For  their 
benefit  I  would  like  to  close  this  chapter  by  saying  that 

214 


Clouds  and   Sunshine 

not  only  are  the  details  I  have  given  reliable,  but  that 
in  the  lives  of  every  real  Christian  who  has  tested  ex- 
perimentally, by  force  of  circumstances,  what  Jesus 
means  when  he  says,  "  I  will  never  leave  thee  nor  for- 
sake thee,"  there  will  be  found  many  incidents  far 
more  wonderful  and  humanly  improbable  than  any  I 
have  given  here. 


215 


CHAPTER  XX 

DEEPER   AND    DEEPER    STILL 

BY  the  next  morning  the  strange  occurrence  at  the 
Wren  Lane  Mission  Hall  was  the  talk  of  the  whole 
district.  Policemen  are  good  sort  of  fellows,  but  they 
lead  lonely  lives,  and  a  little  conversation  at  night  with 
a  man  they  know  is  a  boon  they  are  truly  grateful  for. 
Thus  it  came  about  that  the  news  of  Jemmy  Paterson's 
adventure  buzzed  from  street  to  street,  eclipsing  in 
interest  for  the  time  that  never-failing  topic  of  con- 
versation in  certain  circles,  the  winners.  It  was  all  the 
more  interesting  because  now  for  the  first  time  the 
fact  of  the  robbery  became  generally  known,  and  by 
common  consent  Jemmy  Paterson  was  judged  and 
found  guilty  of  that  as  well  as  of  breaking  into  the  Hall 
yesterday  morning.  It  is  pleasant  to  record  that,  apart 
from  the  injustice  of  assuming  his  guilt  while  he  was 
yet  untried,  his  methods  were  universally  condemned. 
On  the  whole,  even  men  of  the  very  lowest  class  shrink 
from  pretending  to  the  possession  of  religion  in  order 
to  commit  crime  under  its  cloak.  The  men  who  do 
that  kind  of  thing,  whatever  their  station  in  life  may 
be,  are  of  an  exceedingly  bad  kind — almost  a  special 
criminal  class  by  themselves.  Of  them  it  may  be  safely 
said  that  they  will  stick  at  nothing. 

So  it  came  to  pass  that  when  evening  came,  and 
with  it  the  usual  Thursday  open-air  meeting,  there 

216 


Deeper  and  Deeper  Still 

was  a  far  larger  gathering  than  usual  around  the  little 
band  on  the  "  Waste."  And  although  the  speaking  and 
singing  were  very  poor,  all  the  brethren  and  sisters 
being  deeply  depressed  by  recent  events,  there  was  a 
deeply  sympathetic  attention  evident  in  all  their  hear- 
ers. This  found  expression  at  last  when  Bill  Harrop 
came  out  to  say  his  little  piece.  He  was  deeply  moved, 
so  deeply  that  for  some  moments,  although  his  lips 
worked,  he  was  unable  to  utter  an  articulate  sound. 
At  last  he  said :  "  Friends,  it's  no  conjer  t'  'ave  t'  speak 
t'  ye  ter-night,  knowin'  wot  we  all  know  abaht  the 
fings  wot's  'appened  lately.  'Ere's  a  little  band  of  men 
an'  women  come  aht  in  their  own  time,  at  their  own 
exes,  t'  try  an'  do  us  good.  'Ow  Cord's  blessed  an' 
encouraged  'em  we  all  know ;  we've  seen  the  Mission 
'All  growin'  up  aht  o'  nothin',  an'  we've  seen  men  an' 
women  bein'  brort  inter  the  kingdom  of  Gord  'at  we 
sh'd  never  a-thort  'd  be  wuth  a  rotten  tater.  I'm  one 
of  'em,  an'  I  feel  as  if  I  might  be  some  good  some  day, 
even  me.  Well,  you  all  know  now  how  Jemmy  Pater- 
son's  be'aved  tords  'em ;  ye'll  know  now  'ow  some 
one's  pinched  all  the  money  they  had  c'lected  to  pay 
some  'eavy  expenses ;  over  £n  it  was.  An'  it  do  seem 
'ard  'at  such  a  ring  as  this  sh'd  'appen  t'  pore  workin' 
people,  same  as  you  an'  me,  'cause  they're  a-tryin'  t' 
do  their  own  clarse  good.  'Tain't  like  'sif  they  was  a 
big  chutch  wiv  lots  of  wealthy  people  to  gavver  rhand 
'em  an'  make  up  all  they've  lost.  No ;  unless  we  buck 
up  an'  'elp  'em  some  on  'em  '11  'ave  th'  brokers  in,  fur 
your  an'  my  sakes,  an'  don't  you  fergit  it.  Well,  I  tell 
yer  wot  I'm  a-goin'  t'  do;  I'm  goin'  t'  live  same  as 
they  do  in  quod,  an'  save  the  oof  'n  give  it  to  'em  t' 
make  up  wot's  been  snavelled.  Wot  er  you  goin'  t' 
do?  I  know  it's  Fursday,  but  you  could  all  shake  up 

217 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

th'  price  of  a  'arf  o'  sherry  if  y'  thort  you'd  'ave  it. 
Well,  aht  wiv  it,  an'  come  along  Sunday  night  wiv  a 
tanner  each,  two  or  free  'undred  of  yer,  an'  we  sh'll 
make  it  up.  We're  none  on  us  mean,  are  we  ?  " 

The  response  was  instant  and  surprising.  For 
some  minutes  there  was  a  perfect  hail  of  bronze,  with 
not  one  piece  of  silver  among  it.  And  when  it  was 
gathered  up  from  the  ground  there  was  actually  £  I 
55. -worth  of  it.  Jemmy  wept  for  joy.  But  even  this 
perfect  proof  of  the  hold  that  the  Wren  Lane  Mission 
had  obtained  upon  the  minds  of  those  who  lived  and 
laboured  near  did  not  dispel  much  of  the  gloom  that 
hung  over  its  members.  They  had  been  too  deeply 
stirred ;  the  burden  of  responsibility,  of  possible  failure 
in  schemes  that  seemed  to  them  gigantic,  had  been 
too  heavy  to  be  thus  lightly  shaken  off,  and  it  was  a 
very  solemn  row  of  faces  that  bent  over  the  table  at  the 
money  counting.  Old  Pug  Maskery  looked  in,  having 
been  away  at  Margate  for  a  few  days  on  an  excur- 
sion for  mission  purposes  which  gave  him  a  holiday 
at  a  nominal  cost.  And  when  he  heard  all  the  news  he 
looked  grave,  but  soon  brightened  up,  saying :  "  Jem- 
my, my  boy,  you're  young  yet,  an'  you  don't  know  'arf 
the  tricks  the  devil  gits  up  ter  w'en  'e  finks  'is  king- 
dom's likely  ter  git  a  'eavy  knock.  That's  wot  I  carn't 
ever  understand.  'Ere  we  are  in  these  latter  days  wiv 
abaht  a  'underd  servants  of  the  devil  t'  one  real,  true 
servant  of  Gord,  an'  yit  the  ole  demon  seems  just  as 
keen,  just  as  'ard  upon  all  them  'at's  a  doin'  anyfink 
agin  'is  kingdom  as  if  'e  wos  just  a-startin'  in  bisness. 
Nah,  look  'ere,  my  boy,  take  it  from  yer  ole  farver 
wot's  seen  bofe  sides — if  you  wasn't  a-doin'  no  good, 
the  devil  woodn't  bother  you  any.  W'y  some  o'  the 
deadest  chutches  I  knows  of  is  th'  wealthiest.  It  don't 

218 


Deeper  and  Deeper  Still 

matter  to  them  'o\v  th'  chutch  of  Christ  is  a-gettin'  on, 
they  'as  speculashins  abaht  oo  bilt  the  pyramids,  an' 
whevver  they  was  any  people  afore  Adam,  an'  w'ere 
Cain  got  'is  wife,  none  o'  wich  rings  trubbles  the  devil 
a  little  bit.  So  they  '  gits  on ' — that  is,  they  gits 
plenty  o'  money  an'  all  th'  swells  in  the  nayburwood 
finks  as  'ow  it's  a  bit  of  all  right  t'  be  a  member  of  that 
there  chutch  'cause  Aliss  This  and  Sir  Somebody  That 
goes  theer.  Ah,  well,  Jemmy,  don't  worry!  Verily, 
they  'as  their  reward,  and  you'll  'ave  yourn,  safe,  shore 
— carn't  miss  it." 

And  all  the  time  that  Pug  was  speaking  his  son  was 
recalling,  with  cold  chills  running  all  over  him,  how 
only  the  day  before  he  had  decided  to  do  what  even 
the  world  would  call  a  dishonest  action.  How  ashamed 
and  uncomfortable  he  did  feel,  to  be  sure !  There  are 
some  wounds  which  the  Samaritan's  oil  and  wine  cause 
to  smart  and  even  fester.  The  old  tale  of  the  Spartan 
boy  with  the  fox  concealed  in  his  robe  is  true  in  a  great 
many  senses  ;  and  I  am  sure  that  if,  as  some  people  sup- 
pose, the  mind  is  clearer  when  it  is  about  to  vacate  its 
seat  in  the  material  body  than  ever  it  was  before,  there 
are  a  great  many  fairly  excellent  folks  passing  away 
who  listen  to  the  consolations  and  condolements  of 
their  friends  as  if  every  word  were  a  drop  of  vitriol 
falling  into  their  ears.  These  things  should  make  us 
tolerant  of  each  other's  feeblenesses.  That  they  do  not, 
is,  I  think,  quite  as  much  owing  to  want  of  thought 
as  want  of  knowledge.  And  if  every  one  of  us  would 
only  consider  how  his  record  appears  in  the  sight  of  the 
All-seeing,  All-knowing  One.  it  would  make  him  so 
lenient  to  the  offences  and  failures  of  others  that  he 
would  be  looked  upon  by  the  majority  of  those  who 
knew  him  as  the  kindest,  most  tolerant  of  human  be- 

219 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

ings.  I  will  admit,  though,  that  one  can  discover  here 
and  there  a  nature  to  which  forgiveness  is  only  an 
inducement  to  further  wrong-doing.  That  there  are 
to  be  found  people  who  mistake  love  for  weakness, 
compassion  for  condonation,  and  whom  nothing  but 
punishment,  stern  and  unyielding,  seems  to  move. 
Why  this  should  be  so  I  cannot  imagine ;  that  it  is 
so  I  cannot  doubt.  But  let  me  gratefully  record  my 
belief  that  natures  like  this  are  the  exception;  the 
rule  is  that  love  is  the  conqueror,  that  forgiveness  van- 
quishes, and  that  when  all  repressive  measures  have 
failed  the  freedom-bestowing  One  can  achieve  a  splen- 
did success. 

The  next  morning,  Jemmy,  having  four  or  five  or- 
ders to  execute,  was  up  at  three  o'clock,  and  as  in  the 
course  of  the  morning  he  found  several  more  chimneys 
to  sweep,  it  was  ten  o'clock  before  he  reached  home  for 
breakfast,  very  hungry  and  weary.  But  while  he  was 
resting  and  eating  his  plain  and  scanty  meal  he  remem- 
bered the  plight  of  Jemmy  Paterson,  the  burglar,  and 
he  determined  to  go  and  see  him  in  the  infirmary. 
This  resolve,  full  of  kindness  and  Christian  spirit  as 
it  was,  involved  him  in  severe  trouble  with  his  wife, 
who,  as  soon  as  she  saw  him  preparing  to  go  out 
dressed,  demanded  as  usual  to  know  where  he  was 
going.  When  he  told  her  he  was  obliged  to  lay  the 
whole  story  before  her,  and  his  previous  omission  to 
do  so  filled  her  with  wrath.  For  she  at  once  came  to 
the  conclusion  that  he  must  have  had  some  sinister 
motive  for  concealment,  as  it  was  his  usual  practice 
to  tell  her  all  the  news  of  the  Hall  and  receive  meekly 
her  vitriolic  comments  upon  himself,  his  work,  and  his 
associates.  Then,  when  she  had  exhausted  her  stock 
of  anger  upon  that  head,  she  found  a  new  cause  of 

220 


Deeper  and  Deeper  Still 

offence  in  Jemmy's  going  to  visit  the  robber;  why,  it 
is  difficult  to  see,  since  he  had  often  been  to  the  infir- 
mary before  visiting.  But  reason  was  never  Mrs. 
Maskery's  strong  point.  If  she  thought  she  did  well  to 
be  angry,  she  was  angry,  and  with  an  ingenuity  that 
compelled  the  admiration  of  every  one  except  the  unfor- 
tunate object,  she  never  failed  to  find,  for  her  own  sat- 
isfaction, sufficient  cause  for  anger. 

She  had  never  yet  failed  to  realize,  however,  that 
when  once  her  husband  had  persuaded  himself  that  a 
certain  course  was  right,  it  was  impossible  for  her  to 
turn  him  from  it.  It  is  equally  true  that  she  never 
failed  to  try  with  all  her  might.  And  as  the  storm-wind 
of  winter  thrashing  about  the  branches  of  the  young 
trees  makes  them  sinewy  and  capable  of  sustaining  the 
stress  of  coming  storms,  so  these  tussles  with  his  wife 
on  points  of  duty  doubtless  did  much  to  harden  Jemmy's 
moral  gristle.  It  is  true  that  the  scene  almost  always 
ended  in  Jemmy's  taking  refuge  in  flight,  but  that 
is  in  no  wise  derogatory  to  him ;  the  only  unwisdom 
he  showed  was  in  striving  so  long  to  change  her  views, 
a  task  utterly  hopeless. 

On  the  present  occasion,  as  usual,  after  hearing 
patiently  all  the  opprobrium  she  chose  to  load  him 
with  for  about  half  an  hour,  and  only  interposing 
mildly  an  occasional  explanation  or  expostulatory 
word,  he  fled,  and  before  he  had  got  to  the  end  of 
the  street  his  ruffled  spirit  had  grown  calm  again ;  he 
had  forgotten  and  forgiven  for  the  thousandth  time. 
It  is  a  most  difficult  question  to  decide  how  far  one  is 
justified  in  bearing  quietly  with  false  accusations  and 
unjust  abuse  when  it  is  patent  that  their  patience  only 
encourages  the  wrong-doer  to  greater  efforts  in  that 
bad  direction.  Nor  do  I  suppose  that  it  will  ever  be 

221 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

satisfactorily  solved.  It  will  go  on  confronting  patient 
people  until  the  end  of  time,  and  happy  will  they  be  if, 
like  Jemmy,  they  can  dismiss  the  painful  subject  from 
their  minds  as  one  refuses  to  waste  thought  over  a  dif- 
ficult riddle,  not  deeming  the  gain  of  success  in  solu- 
tion to  be  sufficient  payment  for  the  mental  waste  in- 
volved. 

Upon  reaching  the  infirmary  Jemmy  was  at  once 
shown  in  to  the  ward  where  Paterson  lay,  looking  wan 
with  suffering.  A  compound  fracture  of  the  right 
leg,  also  of  the  left  arm,  and  the  breakage  of  three 
ribs,  to  say  nothing  of  many  bruises,  had  brought  the 
burly  fellow  very  low.  So  low,  in  fact,  that  when  he 
saw  Jemmy  he  did  what  probably  he  had  never  done 
before — he  blushed  with  shame.  But  when  Jemmy 
settled  down  by  his  side,  and  said  cheerily,  "  Well, 
ole  man,  'ow  goes  it  ?  Gittin'  'long  famous,  ain't  yer  ?  " 
he  could  no  longer' withhold  his  confidence  from  one 
whom  he  had  so  deeply  injured.  Looking  up  at  Jem- 
my's bright,  sympathetic  face,  he  murmured : 

"  Thankye,  Jemmy.  I'm  a  doin'  well ;  ever  s'  much 
better  'n  I  'spected  or  deserves.  I  wish  I'd  a  ben  killed. 
Now,  don't  say  nothin'  " — for  he  could  see  Jemmy 
about  to  interpose — "  don't  say  nothin'  till  I  tell  yer.  It 
was  me  robbed  yer  of  that  there  money.  I  thort  you 
might  'ave  somefin  worf  pinchin',  an'  that  wos  w'y  I 
stopped  that  Sat'dy  night  so  's  I  c'd  see  whereabouts  you 
wos  likely  t'  put  the  stuff.  And  I  was  in  the  'All  arf  an 
'our  after  you'd  all  left,  same  way  as  I  was  a-gettin'  in 
this  las'  time — through  th'  skylight.  Wot  did  I  care 
abaht  yore  troubles  or  'oo'd  'ave  ter  make  it  up  ?  Noth- 
in' at  all ;  I  was  only  thinkin'  o'  th'  oof.  But  th'  way 
ye  met  me  very  near  choked  me  orf.  I  ses  to  meself 
w'en  I  got  clear :  '  Well,  I  won't  go  near  their  drum  no 

222 


Deeper  and  Deeper  Still 

more;  they  ain't  arf  a  bad  lot  o'  jossers.'  An'  I 
wouldn't  a-done  neither  only  I  got  boozed,  an'  some- 
body touched  me  for  wot  I'd  got  left,  'n'  then  I  thort 
I'd  go  through  the  old  drum  agen.  An'  you  know  wot 
'appened.  I'm  glad  of  it.  Only  thing,  I  wish  't  'd 
a-been  wuss.  If  I'd  only  a-broke  me  worfless  neck  it 
would  a-ben  all  right." 

"  Oh,  don't  say  that,"  said  Jemmy,  as  the  poor 
wretch  sank  back  exhausted.  "  Wile  there's  life 
there's  'ope,  y'  know.  You're  still  in  th'  place,  o'  re- 
pentance, an'  it  may  be  'at  Gord's  got  some  great 
work  fur  you  to  do  that  nobody  else  can  do.  Now, 
just  you  cheer  up.  We  sharn't  appear  agen  ye;  at 
least,  if  we  'ave  to  we  ain't  a-goin'  t'  say  more  'n  we 
can  'elp.  It  ain't  no  part  of  our  belief  to  'unt  th' 
sinner  dahn  an'  punish  'im.  We  know  'at  'is  punish- 
ment's quite  'eavy  enough  gen'lly  wivout  us  a-puttin' 
more  on  it.  Wotever  it  is  they  give  yeh  fur  wot  ye 
did,  don't  you  fink  as  we  'ad  any  'and  in  it.  We'll  do 
ahr  best  t'  make  fings  brighter  for  ye." 

"  Oh,  that's  all  right,"  said  Paterson.  "  I'm  goin'  t' 
make  a  clean  breast  o'  th'  'ole  thing,  an'  take  wotever 
they  gives  me  wiv  a  thankful  'eart.  I  deserve  it  all,  an' 
it'll  do  me  good  t'  git  it.  Nah,  go  away.  You're  such  a 
good  little  chap  that  I  feel  awful  to  fink  I  ever  did  ye  so 
much  'arm,  an'  I  really  carn't  bear  t'  see  ye  a-settin' 
there.  Come  agen,  won't  ye,  sometimes?  P'raps  w'en 
ye  do  I'll  feel  better  able  to  speak  t'  ye  than  I  do  nah." 

So  Jemmy  bade  him  good-bye,  and  went  back  to 
his  uncomfortable  home  with  a  light  heart,  happy  in 
the  consciousness  that  he  had  done  his  duty.  When 
Saturday  night  came  he  told  the  story  in  the  prayer- 
meeting — told  it,  too,  with  such  graphic  power  that 
every  one  present  was  moved  almost  to  tears,  and 

223 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

unanimously  agreed  that  this  was  the  way  that  the 
blessed  Master  himself  would  have  acted.  Yet,  strange 
to  say,  on  that  very  night  a  gang  of  Paterson's  wild 
associates,  having  taken  enough  drink  to  make  them 
reckless,  came  up  the  lane  and  amused  themselves 
by  breaking  every  window  in  the  Hall,  utterly  destroy- 
ing the  lamp  hung  over  the  entrance,  and  battering 
both  doors  with  big  stones  until  they  looked  more  like 
a  section  of  road  than  anything  else.  It  was  a  pitiful 
sight  that  greeted  Brother  Salmon  when  he  came  on 
Sunday  morning,  and  naturally  it  cast  a  gloom  over 
the  breaking  of  bread — so  much  so  that  when  Jemmy 
was  strolling  homeward  with  Brother  and  Sister  Sal- 
mon, after  the  meeting,  he  said  in  deepest  depression : 
"  Brother  Salmon,  it  seems  's  if  we  never  'ave  such 
blessed  seasons  of  refreshin'  Sunday  mornin's  as  we 
useter.  'S  if  nah  we've  got  ahr  'All  an'  a  goodly  num- 
ber 'as  jined  the  chutch,  'at  th'  dear  Lord  wasn't  as 
comf'ble  wiv  ers  as  'e  useter  be.  Or  is  it,  I  wonder, 
as  farver  ses,  'at  we've  got  some'un  in  ahr  midst  as 
ain't  right  wiv  'im — the  Lord,  I  mean  ?  " 

"  Oh,  don't  think  that,  brother !  "  exclaimed  Sister 
Salmon ;  "  there's  no  need  to,  I'm  sure.  Whom  the 
Lord  loveth  he  chasteneth,  you  know;  an'  besides, 
we've  been  permitted  to  do  a  great  work  among  the 
people  here  lately,  an'  you  don't  suppose  the  devil's 
a-goin'  to  let  us  off  without  tryin'  all  he  knows  to  make 
us  suffer  for  it?  Bless  his  Holy  Name,  7  ain't  going 
to  feel  down-hearted  as  long  as  I  see  souls  bein'  saved 
an'  added  to  the  church  every  week.  An'  see  how  the 
young  converts  is  a-comin'  on,  too.  That  young 
Jackson,  did  you  notice  how  he  prayed  this  mornin'? 
An'  don't  you  remember  how  he  spoke  in  the  open-air 
last  Sunday?" 

224 


Deeper  and  Deeper  Still 

Jemmy's  face  brightened  up  at  once  as  he  replied : 
"  Yers,  sister,  I  shou'd  fink  I  did.  'E's  a  fine  speaker 
already.  An'  'ow  well  he  knows  'is  Bible!  W'y,  I 
cou'd  almost  leave  'im  to  conduc'  a  meetin'.  But  then 
ye  see  'e's  been  well  brort  up,  an'  it's  only  sence  'e's 
ben  in  London  'at  'e's  run  wild."  The  man  of  whom 
they  spoke  was  a  fine  stalwart  young  policeman  from 
Shropshire,  who  had  been  gathered  in  at  the  memo- 
rable meeting  on  the  "  Waste  "  when  Bill  Harrop  was 
converted.  The  ways  of  mission  folk  apparently  came 
quite  natural  to  him,  for  he  had  never  gone  very  far 
astray,  and  the  memory  of  his  quiet  country  home  and 
the  serenity  of  his  life  there  took  but  little  reviving. 
But  there  was  one  thing  about  him  of  which  these 
simple  souls  seemed  quite  unconscious.  He  was  a 
born  leader  of  men,  and  no  subordinate  position  could 
long  content  him.  Already  he  had  visions  of  the  time 
when  he  would  be  the  chief  figure  in  the  Wren  Lane 
Mission.  It  may  be  thought  puerile  to  aspire  to  such 
a  lowly  position  as  that,  but,  dear  reader,  remember 
that  it  was  a  leadership,  a  place  of  authority,  and  such 
natures  as  his  cannot  but  reach  out  after  authority, 
even  though  it  be  over  as  humble  a  band  as  this  little 
gathering  was. 

And  all  unconsciously  by  their  praise  of  him,  their 
pushing  him  forward  whenever  possible,  they  were 
feeding  the  flame  of  his  ambition.  (Should  that  seem 
much  too  large  a  word  to  characterize  such  an  aim  as 
his,  remember  that  the  quality  is  the  same  whether  the 
object  be  great  or  small.)  He  it  was  who  boldly  came 
forward,  and  with  the  ever-willing  Bill  Harrop's  aid 
determined  to  repair  the  extensive  damage  done  to 
the  building  by  Paterson's  friends.  In  quite  a  patron- 
izing way  he  begged  Jemmy  not  to  worry  himself 

225 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

about  it.  He  (Jackson),  Harrop,  and  a  few  others 
would  do  all  that  was  to  be  done  without  troubling 
the  outside  public  with  any  details.  And  it  was  so. 
They  worked  like  beavers ;  they  stinted  themselves  of 
the  common  necessaries  of  life,  and  before  the  next 
Sunday's  meeting  every  broken  pane  had  been  replaced, 
the  door  had  been  taken  off  its  hinges,  planed  and 
painted,  the  lamp  was  replaced,  and  the  Hall  looked 
quite  fresh  and  bright  again.  The  joy  of  the  brethren 
at  this  energetic  behaviour  on  the  part  of  the  new 
adherents  may  be  imagined.  It  was  in  nowise  less- 
ened when  before  the  expiration  of  Paterson's  short 
term  of  imprisonment  (short  because  of  the  absolute 
refusal  of  the  brethren  to  press  any  charge  against 
him,  and  their  pleading  that  he  might  be  given  the 
benefit  of  the  doubt  as  to  how  he  came  to  be  in  their 
premises  in  such  a  condition)  Brother  Jackson  pro- 
posed that  he  should  be  met  at  the  prison-door, 
brought  to  the  mission,  and  there  presented  with  a 
new  barrow  and  donkey,  as  well  as  a  sum  of  money  to 
go  to  market  with  so  that  he  might  resume  his  real 
calling  as  a  costermonger  with  a  fair  chance  of  success. 
But  I  am  anticipating  somewhat.  Before  Pater- 
son's  term  had  nearly  expired,  Jackson  had  suggested, 
and  succeeded  in  establishing,  a  Tuesday  evening 
series  of  Bible  readings  and  expoundings  by  himself. 
At  the  first  two  or  three,  well  attended  as  they  were, 
Jemmy  and  his  father  were  present,  and  were  both 
delighted  at  the  way  in  which  Brother  Jackson  handled 
the  sacred  Word.  Presently,  however,  they  were  not 
so  sure  as  to  his  perfect  orthodoxy.  It  seemed  to  them 
that  he  was  straying  away  from  the  old  paths  in  which 
they  had  long  trodden  into  strange  no-thoroughfares 
of  dogma.  But,  as  neither  of  them  were  very  keen 

226 


Deeper  and  Deeper  Still 

disputants,  or  able  to  dissect  a  question  with  any  logi- 
cal ability,  they  held  their  peace  for  the  time. 

The  finances  of  the  Hall  did  not  improve,  however, 
and  as  it  became  necessary  to  discontinue  the  open-air 
meetings  on  account  of  the  inclemency  of  the  weather, 
the  falling  off  in  the  revenue  at  once  developed  into 
a  matter  for  serious  concern.  In  vain  did  each  speaker 
within  the  Hall  warn  all  the  congregation  of  the  dan- 
ger of  letting  their  contributions  dwindle.  All  those 
who  have  ever  had  anything  to  do  with  church  finances 
know  how  difficult  it  is  to  arouse  a  sense  of  financial 
responsibility  in  the  minds  of  the  individual  members 
of  the  congregation.  Dimly,  perhaps,  they  realize  that 
they  ought  to  give,  and  that  not  spasmodically  but 
methodically,  and  that  unless  they  do  the  church  will 
get  into  serious  difficulties.  But  that  is  where  the  ma- 
jority stop.  The  many  warnings  and  entreaties  ad- 
dressed to  them  by  the  pastor  glide  fruitlessly  over 
their  heads,  and  the  result  is  that  a  few  members  si- 
lently shoulder  the  bulk  of  the  burden  that  should  be 
borne  by  all,  and  the  defaulters,  for  I  can  call  them 
nothing  else,  are  well  content  that  it  should  be  so. 

Let  it  be  recorded  in  justice  to  Brother  Jackson 
that  he  left  no  stone  unturned  to  keep  the  contributions 
up  to  the  required  amount,  giving  himself  really  more 
than  he  could  afford.  But  he  did  not  fail  to  drop  hints 
occasionally  to  such  as  he  thought  disposed  to  receive 
them ;  that  the  superintendent  was  somewhat  wanting 
in  energy,  as  he  certainly  was  in  setting  an  example  in 
the  matter  of  subscriptions.  The  latter  failing  was  well 
known  to  all  the  older  members,  and  condoned  be- 
cause all  knew  how  hard  a  struggle  Jemmy  had  for 
bread ;  but  the  newcomers  did  not  realize  this  so  well, 
and  consequently  felt,  especially  those  whose  contribu- 

227 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

tions  were  very  small,  much  aggrieved  that  the  super- 
intendent should  not  rise  to  the  dignity  of  his  office 
in  better  style. 

In  this  unsatisfactory  way  matters  had  gone  on  for 
some  weeks,  Jackson  having  taken  over  the  treas- 
urership  meanwhile,  when  the  storm  which  had  un- 
doubtedly been  brewing  for  some  time  suddenly  burst. 
At  the  Tuesday  church  meeting,  which  Jackson  had 
taken  care  to  have  well  attended,  he  suddenly  brought 
a  charge  against  Jemmy  of  having  neglected  his  duty, 
or  at  any  rate  of  having  failed  to  perform  it.  More- 
over, he  went  on  to  say  that  while  Jemmy  and  his 
father  were  undoubtedly  a  draw  in  the  open-air  meet- 
ings, and  had  been  signally  blessed  in  the  bringing  in 
of  such  as  should  be  saved,  they  were  quite  incapable 
of  managing  the  affairs  of  such  an  important  gathering 
as  the  Wren  Lane  Mission  had  become,  or  of  teach- 
ing the  young  converts  the  doctrines  it  was  so  neces- 
sary they  should  know  in  order  to  become,  in  their 
turn,  spreaders  of  the  light. 

It  was  a  long  harangue,  and  it  made  a  great  im- 
pression. But  it  did  Jemmy  good.  Deep  down  within 
him  smouldered  hidden  fires  of  that  dogged  energy 
that  his  father  was  so  notable  for  in  the  bad  old  days 
before  his  conversion.  And  this  outspoken  attempt  to 
oust  him  from  a  position  that  he  occupied  by  right 
divine,  as  he  believed,  aroused  him  effectually.  He 
sprang  to  his  feet  at  the  close  of  Jackson's  speech,  and 
made  so  vigorous  a  declaration  of  his  views  and  of  his 
awakening  to  the  real  aims  of  Mr.  Jackson,  as  he  now 
called  him,  that  the  audience  visibly  wavered.  But 
while  they  were  wondering  whereunto  this  matter  would 
grow,  old  Pug  Maskery  arose  and  said :  "  Brevren  an' 
sisters,  less  adjurn  th'  meetin'  till  Sunday  night,  tryin' 

228 


Deeper  and  Deeper  Still 

then  t'  get  all  our  members  an'  friends  here.  An'  then 
we'll  arsk  'em  w'ich  they'll  'ave,  my  son  or  Bruvver 
Jackson  fer  superintendent.  We  must  settle  it  some- 
'ow;  it's  gone  too  fur  t'  be  patched  up — it  must  be 
settled."  At  that  Brother  Salmon  at  once  pronounced 
the  benediction,  and  the  audience  dispersed  to  spread 
the  news  of  the  first  split  in  the  Wren  Lane  Mission. 

Meanwhile  Jackson  spent  every  spare  moment  call- 
ing upon  possible  adherents,  discussing  the  roseate 
prospects  of  the  mission  under  so  energetic  and  capable 
a  superintendent  as  he  should  be,  and  dismally  dwelling 
upon  the  certain  disaster  impending  if  Jemmy,  good 
Christian  but  incapable  business  man  as  he  was,  was 
allowed  to  continue  in  command.  Altogether,  the 
very  keenness  of  his  interest  and  the  flow  of  his  persua- 
sive talk  mightily  impressed  people,  and  even  those 
best  affected  towards  Jemmy  began  to  shake  their 
heads  and  say,  "  Well,  it  would  be  a  pity  to  let  the 
mission  run  down,  wouldn't  it  ?  "  Quite  forgetting 
that  the  principal  sufferers  in  such  an  event  would 
be  the  original  members  who  were  trustees,  and  who 
would,  of  course,  be  called  upon  to  find  the  rent  for 
seven  years  in  any  event. 


229 


CHAPTER  XXI 
SAUL'S  RETURN 

IN  all  the  range  of  human  experience  I  make  bold 
to  say  that  there  is  nothing  more  beautiful  and  at  the 
same  time  more  wonderful  to  watch  than  the  behaviour 
of  a  newly  converted  man  or  woman.  They  have  a 
happiness  far  too  deep  for  expression,  but  they  have 
also  so  sensitive  an  appreciation  of  danger  to  that  hap- 
piness through  their  failing  to  maintain  the  high  stand- 
ard they  have  set  before  themselves,  that  the  way 
in  which  they  walk  through  the  wilderness  of  this  world 
is  most  pathetic  to  watch.  "  Smit  with  a  sudden  and  a 
sweet  surprise,"  they  welcome  every  blessing  with  a 
profound  yet  glad  humility,  and  as  in  every  circum- 
stance of  life,  so  far  as  it  affects  themselves,  they  are  able 
to  find  blessing  intended  for  them,  their  cup  of  thank- 
fulness runs  over  all  the  time.  Like  infants  learning  to 
walk,  you  shall  see  the  once  selfish  person  totteringly 
practising  unselfishness,  the  once  foul  tongue  almost 
silent,  while  its  new  language  is  being  learned,  the 
flaccid  muscles  of  the  once  indolent,  impudent  loafer 
being  braced  to  meet  the  new  demands  made  upon 
them  by  this  mighty  indwelling  force  which  no  amount 
of  human  reasoning  or  philosophy  can  ever  satisfac- 
torily account  for  or  explain  away. 

But  when,  instead  of  an  individual  case,  there  is, 
as  in  the  crew  of  the  Asteroid,  a  company  of  believers, 

230 


Saul's  Return 

all  without  the  faintest  tinge  of  hypocrisy  or  cant,  clus- 
tered together  in  their  little  floating  world  with  an 
titter  absence  of  all  the  evils  by  which  folks  ashore 
are  continually  being  tempted  to  forsake  the  Lord,  the 
sight  is  one  that  is  as  near  an  advance  view  of  the 
joys  of  heaven  as  can  be  witnessed  while  yet  this  ham- 
pering environment  of  flesh  compasses  us  about. 
There  is  nothing  monastic  about  such  a  life  except  in 
the  enforced  coarseness  of  the  food.  No  rule  of  si- 
lence, no  formal  routine  of  mechanical  prayers,  no  self- 
torture.  His  service  is  perfect  freedom,  because  the 
will  of  Christ  has  become  the  will  of  the  Christian. 
There  is,  however,  deep  down  in  every  heart  a  dread 
of  the  time  swiftly  approaching  when  the  loving  com- 
pany must  separate,  when  new  companions  will,  by 
every  wile  that  the  devil  can  suggest,  endeavour  to 
turn  the  released  ones  back  into  the  loathsome  dun- 
geons they  have  been  delivered  from,  until  the  trem- 
bling Christian  is  prone  to  pray  that  it  may  please  God 
to  set  him  free  from  the  burden  of  the  flesh,  which  he 
feels  to  be  more  than  he  can  bear.  In  other  words, 
that  he  may  receive  the  crown  without  bearing  the 
cross,  a  perfectly  natural  and  consequently  a  purely 
selfish  desire. 

Therefore  it  was  that  as  the  Asteroid,  bounding 
homeward  before  a  strong  westerly  gale  at  the  rate 
of  three  hundred  miles  a  day,  gave  all  her  crew  to 
understand  that  their  time  of  refreshing  was  drawing 
to  a  close,  they  were  one  and  all  possessed  by  mingled 
feelings  of  joy  and  dread.  Every  seafarer  loves  to  see 
the  termination  of  his  long  journey  draw  near,  fer- 
vently desires  the  consummation  of  another  voyage. 
So  did  these,  but  they  dreaded  the  beginning  of  the 
fight  as  well  as  the  parting  from  from  one  another. 
16  231 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

Perhaps  of  all  of  them  Saul  had  the  most  single  eye. 
He  loved  them  all,  as  he  was  beloved  by  them,  but 
upon  his  heart  night  and  day  was  the  welfare  of  the 
brethren  at  Wren  Lane,  and  his  impatience  to  be  back 
again  with  them  grew  almost  painful  in  its  intensity. 

The  cares  of  his  position,  however,  kept  him  from 
becoming  too  much  absorbed  in  anticipation,  and  as 
they  came  into  greener  water,  betokening  the  shallow- 
ing sea  and  their  nearness  to  land,  all  hands  found 
quite  sufficient  in  present  duties  and  anxieties  to  oc- 
cupy their  minds  fully.  For,  as  often  happens  in  the 
early  spring,  stormy  weather,  unwilling  to  release  its 
grip  upon  the  year,  made  a  final  desperate  spurt,  bring- 
ing dismay  and  much  suffering  to  thousands  of  sea- 
farers. Howling  squalls  of  snow  swept  down  upon 
them  from  the  low,  leaden  skies,  enwrapping  them  in 
a  whirling  smother  of  white  cold  that  seemed  to  freeze 
their  very  hearts.  This  is  one  of  the  greatest  hard- 
ships that  the  sailor  endures,  yet  one  that  he  makes 
least  moan  about.  The  sudden  leap  out  of  a  tropical 
temperature  into  the  rigour  of  English  Channel  win- 
ter weather  is  so  trying  to  that  wonderful  piece  of 
mechanism,  the  human  body,  that  it  is  no  wonder 
sailors  become  prematurely  old.  On  shore  we  com- 
plain if  the  weather  shows  those  peculiar  vicissitudes 
and  vacillations  between  heat  and  cold  so  peculiarly 
characteristic  of  our  islands.  But  we  can  cope  with 
it  by  sheltering  ourselves,  and  by  attention  to  cloth- 
ing, diet,  etc.  Moreover,  the  range  is  never  very  great. 
But  the  sailor,  who  for  weeks  has  been  basking  in 
tropical  sunshine  until  his  blood  is  thin  as  claret,  sud- 
denly finds  himself  beset  by  Arctic  weather.  He  is 
wet  and  cannot  dry  his  clothing.  He  is  bitterly  cold, 
and  has  no  means  of  warming  himself,  for  a  stove 

232 


Saul's  Return 

in  his  abode  (a  "  bogey,"  as  it  is  called)  is  said  to  be 
very  unhealthful.  And  so  he  must  shiver  and  suffer, 
while  from  his  food  he  gets  no  sensible  degree  of  com- 
fort as  far  as  the  raising  of  his  temperature  goes. 

As  they  drew  nearer  the  land  and  their  deep-sea 
lead  smelt  bottom,  bringing  up  in  its  "  arming  "  of 
tallow,  sand,  shells,  and  hake's  teeth,  down  came  the 
fog  in  vast  eddying  wreaths  like  smoke.  With  it  came 
also  that  terrible  sense  of  proximity  to  danger  which  is 
peculiar  to  seamen  in  a  fog.  Even  in  Channel,  what  is, 
perhaps,  the  most  crowded  arm  of  the  sea  in  the  world 
always  seems  to  have  so  much  room  when  the  weather 
is  clear,  that  the  idea  of  collision  is  scouted  as  ridiculous. 
But  when  the  fog  shuts  down,  all  those  wide  breadths 
appear  to  have  closed  up.  The  eye  vainly  tries  to 
pierce  through  the  dense  veil,  the  ear  aches  with  lis- 
tening for  the  hoot  of  sirens  or  the  wailing  shrieks  of 
whistles,  while  every  fibre  of  the  seaman's  body  tin- 
gles with  expectation  of  being  suddenly  called  upon  to 
battle  for  his  life  with  the  utmost  energy.  On  board  of 
the  Asteroid,  however,  there  was  less  of  this  waste  of 
nerve-force  than  usual,  because  all  hands  were  imbued 
with  the  idea  that  they  were  under  the  peculiar  and 
particular  care  of  God.  Whatever  befell  them  would, 
they  were  sure,  be  the  very  best  thing  for  their  wel- 
fare. With  this  perfect  panoply  of  faith  to  ward  off 
those  infirmities  of  fear  or  apprehension  that  do  so 
easily  beset  men  engaged  in  dangerous  callings,  they 
were  wonderfully  light-hearted,  and  sprang  to  their 
duties  in  response  to  the  calls  made  upon  them  with 
a  cheerful  alacrity  delightful  to  see.  As  Captain 
Vaughan  said  to  Mr.  Carroll :  "  I  don't  want  to  meet 
trouble  half-way,  but  these  dear  fellows  are  spoiling 
me  for  the  next  lot  I  shall  get.  I  would  to  God  I  could 

233 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

keep  them  by  the  ship.  But  that's  out  of  the  question, 
of  course." 

So  the  Asteroid,  her  home  wind  holding  steadily, 
ran  swiftly  up  Channel  in  safety,  until  she  entered  the 
narrowing  waters  off  Beachy  Head.  The  skipper  had 
not  taken  steam  because  he  had  not  seen  a  tug,  and 
being  anxious  to  shorten  the  anxious  period  of  his 
navigation,  was  carrying  a  heavy  press  of  sail.  Sud- 
denly the  fog  seemed  to  grow  solid  just  ahead,  and 
out  of  that  density  leaped  a  huge  steamship,  her  elec- 
tric masthead  light  glaring  like  the  solitary  eye  of  some 
suddenly  awakened  Cyclops.  With  both  helms  hard 
aport,  the  ships  slowly  revolved,  as  if  upon  an  axis,  but 
so  close  to  each  other  that  the  agonized  passengers  on 
board  the  steamer  could  hear  the  dull  booming  of  the 
sails  of  the  Asteroid  as  they  sullenly  beat  against  the 
masts.  A  few  moments  of  terrible  suspense,  and  the 
ships  swung  clear  of  each  other,  not  a  splinter  or  a 
rope-yarn  displaced,  and  all  who  thus  escaped  entitled 
henceforth  to  say  that  they  had  been  suspended  over 
the  grave  by  a  single  hair. 

Owing  to  the  smartness  of  the  Asteroid's  crew,  but 
a  very  few  minutes  elapsed  before  all  sail  necessary  was 
again  set,  and  those  no  longer  needed  were  furled. 
Then  shone  out  the  familiar  low  beam  of  Dungeness, 
inviting  the  homeward  bounder  to  stay  awhile  and  re- 
ceive a  pilot  from  the  cutter  cruising  in  the  East  Bay. 
Presently  the  burly  form  of  their  new  guide  appeared 
at  the  gangway,  welcomed  as  a  pilot  always  is  by 
homeward-coming  crews — as  if  now,  indeed,  the  perils 
of  the  voyage  were  all  at  an  end.  And  hardly  had 
the  sails  been  filled  and  the  ship  gathered  way  before 
out  steamed  a  tug  from  Dover  harbour  and  offered  her 
services.  They  were  immediately  accepted,  and  the 

234 


Saul's  Return 

joyful  news  communicated  to  the  watch  below.  There 
is  no  order  more  cheerfully  obeyed  on  board  ship  than 
that  to  pass  the  hawser  or  tow-rope  along  to  the  tug, 
and  it  was  a  heart-lifting  sight  to  see  those  fine  chaps 
move.  Morning  was  just  breaking,  so  that  the  pilot 
had  a  full  view  of  their  actions.  As  soon  as  the  tug 
was  fast  and  steaming  ahead,  the  pilot  turned  to  the 
skipper  and  said :  "  Cap'n,  you've  got  a  splendid  lot 
o'  fellows  here.  Tain't  often  nowadays  one  has  the 
pleasure  of  seeing  work  done  aboardship  as  these  fel- 
lows are  doin'  it."  Captain  Vaughan's  face  lit  up  with 
a  proud  smile  as  he  replied :  "  Pilot,  you  never  said  a 
truer  word  in  your  life.  But  you  make  me  think  of 
the  last  time  such  a  remark  was  passed  to  me  and  the 
change  that's  come  over  me  since  then."  Having  thus 
got  his  opening,  the  skipper  told  the  story  of  his  conver- 
sion in  Calcutta,  of  the  blessing  Saul  had  been  to  them 
all,  and  the  time  of  perfect  peace  they  had  all  enjoyed 
since  leaving  port.  He  wound  up  with  streaming 
eyes,  his  heart  running  over  with  gratitude  as  he  re- 
membered all  the  joys  of  the  voyage,  and  finally  said: 
"  Now,  pilot,  I  don't  know  how  you  feel  about  it,  but 
I  feel  that  with  such  a  testimony  as  I  have  given  no 
sailorman  ought  to  hesitate  for  a  moment  before  ac- 
cepting the  blessing  offered  him  by  such  a  Father ; 
especially  a  pilot,  who  knows  so  well  what  it  means  to 
poor  sailors  to  have  some  sure  guide  well  acquainted 
with  all  the  intricate  navigation  of  life,  and  whose 
knowledge  is  so  perfect  that  he  cannot  make  a  mis- 
take." 

The  skipper  stopped  abruptly  and  looked  at  the  pilot. 
As  he  did  so  he  saw  that  upon  that  worthy  man's  face 
there  was  a  most  happy  smile,  an  infectious  smile. 
Slowly  the  pilot  replied :  "  Cap'n,  I  wouldn't  inter- 

235 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

rupt  ye,  for  I  ben  enjoyin'  myself  more  than  I  can  pos- 
sibly give  ye  any  idea  of.  I've  ben  a  Christian  for  a 
good  many  years  now,  an'  when  I  look  back  on  'em 
I  can't  see  that  I've  done  much  to  justify  my  calling. 
I'm  an  active  member  of  our  church  (I'm  a  Congrega- 
tionalist)  when  I'm  ashore,  but  I  can't  say,  I  daren't 
say,  that  I  use  my  opportunities  afloat  as  I  might  do, 
not  by  a  very  long  way.  What  you've  just  told  me, 
however,  has,  I  hope,  hit  me  pretty  hard.  You've 
shown  me  a  picture  of  a  state  of  sea-life  such  as  I've 
long  dreamed  about,  but,  like  so  many  others,  I  never 
took  one  little  step  towards  makin'  my  dream  a  reality. 
I  will  now,  though.  By  God's  help,  I  certainly  will. 
An'  p'raps,  if  you  git  half  a  chance  before  it's  too  late, 
you'll  give  me  an  opportunity  of  tellin'  your  fine  fel- 
lows as  much  before  they  go  ashore." 

"  I'm  real  glad  you  mentioned  that,  pilot,  because 
it's  just  given  me  the  clew  I  want,"  said  the  skipper. 
"  There's  been  a  hazy  sort  of  an  idea  floatin'  round  in 
my  brain  for  several  days  past  that  such  a  ship's  com- 
pany as  this  oughtn't  to  part  as  usual.  That  we  ought 
to  have  a  sort  of  thanksgivin'  service  before  we  get  far 
enough  up  the  river  to  be  interrupted  by  visitors. — Mr. 
Carroll !  " — as  that  officer  came  in  sight — "  as  soon  as 
the  hands  have  had  their  breakfast  let  them  muster  aft 
for  a  few  final  words ;  everybody  in  the  ship,  if  you 
please,  and  we'll  gather  on  the  poop  so  that  the  man 
at  the  wheel  can  take  part  at  the  same  time." 

"  Ay,  ay,  sir,"  answered  Carroll.  "  I'll  see  to  it. 
They'll  all  be  very  glad  of  the  chance,  I  know." 

All  hands  were  sent  to  breakfast  at  seven  bells,  a 
breakfast  that  the  skipper  had  personally  superintended 
the  preparation  of,  all  that  could  be  found  worth  hav- 
ing in  the  cuddy  stores.  And  when  it  was  over  the 

236 


Saul's  Return 

ship  was  steadily  being  towed  up  the  Mouse  Channel, 
passing  all  the  old  familiar  landmarks  one  after  the 
other,  and  overhead  gleams  of  pale  sunshine  were  just 
breaking  through  the  grayness  of  the  overhanging 
clouds.  At  one  bell  (8.30)  all  hands  came  aft,  no 
longer  shamefacedly  and  awkwardly,  as  would  once 
have  been  the  case,  but  brightly,  cheerily,  and  all  at 
ease,  as  men  who  respected  themselves  and  knew  the 
respect  due  to  others.  They  grouped  themselves  all 
about  the  poop  in  obedience  to  the  skipper's  gestures, 
and  when  all  hands  were  present  Captain  Vaughan 
stood  out  in  front  of  them  and  said :  "  My  dear  fellows, 
for  the  very  first  time  in  my  life  my  heart  is  heavy  at 
getting  home.  It's  heavy  in  spite  of  the  joy  I  natu- 
rally feel  at  the  prospect  of  meeting  my  own  dear  ones. 
Heavy  because  I  am  about  to  part  with  the  best  crew 
ever  man  had.  For  under  the  truly  wretched  condi- 
tions of  our  merchant  service  there  is  no  possible  pros- 
pect of  us  all  being  shipmates  again,  although  I'd 
gladly  give  a  good  percentage  of  my  pay  to  know  that 
we  were  all  goin'  to  make  another  voyage  together. 
Oh,  dear,  but  my  heart  is  sore  at  the  idea  of  partin'  with 
you  all.  But  perhaps  I'm  selfish.  I'm  forgettin',  in  my 
desire  for  my  own  personal  comfort,  how  necessary  it 
is  that  all  you  missionaries  of  the  real  kind  should 
be  scattered  about  through  as  many  ships  as  possible. 
"  An'  that  brings  me  to  what  I've  called  you  aft 
for.  Only  as  your  skipper,  mind  you,  for  the  man  that 
has  the  best  right  to  talk  to  you  on  this  subject  is  the 
man  we  all  love  and  admire,  the  man  to  whom,  under 
God,  we  all  owe  the  salvation  of  our  souls.  God  Al- 
mighty bless  and  prosper  Saul  Andrews,  our  bo'sun." 
A  broken  chorus  of  "  God  bless  hims  "  and  "  Amens  " 
went  up,  and  on  several  bronzed  faces  there  shone  a 

237 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

jewel  of  incomparable  lustre,  the  grateful  tear  welling 
from  a  heart  surcharged  with  divine  love.  The  skipper 
resumed :  "  You  know,  dear  boys,  that  presently  we 
shall  be  in  the  thick  of  all  those  snares  that  our  coun- 
trymen spread  for  us  when  we  are  let  loose  for  a  brief 
holiday.  Now,  we  must  all  freeze  on  to  the  fact  that 
if  we  want  to  be  truly  happy,  not  only  while  we're 
ashore  but  afterward,  we  must  never  forget  for  one 
moment  that  we  have  been  bought  with  a  price.  We're 
no  longer  bits  of  flotsam  and  jetsam.  We're  witnesses 
for  God  in  one  of  the  most  difficult  callings  known  to 
men.  Therefore,  my  advice  to  you  is,  that  when  the 
B.'  T.  (Board  of  Trade)  man  comes  aboard,  all  of  you 
who  have  a  home  to  go  to,  even  if  you've  been  so  long 
away  that  you've  almost  forgotten  it,  be  off  at  once. 
Those  who  haven't  any  home,  go  and  get  some  decent 
lodgings  away  from  sailor-town  and  its  miserable, 
squalid  temptations.  And  keep  in  touch  with  me  all 
you  that  can.  It  may  be  that  we  may  all  or  nearly  all 
manage  to  make  another  voyage  together.  But  for  the 
dear  Lord's  sake  don't  forget  that  all  the  happy  hours 
we've  had  since  we  left  Calcutta  have  only  been  to  fit 
us  for  the  fiery  trial  that's  about  to  try  us.  Now  the 
pilot  wants  to  say  just  a  word  or  two  to  you." 

Forthwith  the  pilot  came  forward  and  said  :  "  Well, 
Cap'n  Vaughan,  officers,  and  men  of  this  fine  ship, 
I'm  afraid  I'm  a  bit  tongue-tied.  Ye  see,  I've  neg- 
lected my  opportunities  of  sayin'  a  word  for  the  Master 
for  so  long  that  I  don't  know  how  to  begin  now.  But 
one  thing  I  can  say,  an'  that  is,  that  what  your  skipper 
has  told  me  about  your  wonderful  voyage  has  made  me 
feel  dreadfully  ashamed  of  myself,  an'  I  take  ye  all  to 
witness  that  from  this  out  I  intend  to  say  something 
for  the  extendin'  of  the  kingdom  of  God  in  every 

238 


Saul's  Return 

ship  I  take  out  or  bring  in.  After  the  example  you've 
all  set  me  I  feel  right  down  ashamed  of  myself.  And 
I  must  say  this  one  thing  more,  which  is,  that  of  all  the 
crews  I've  ever  seen  in  my  life  you  are  the  brightest, 
the  smartest,  and  the  happiest-lookin'.  God  bless 
every  one  of  ye." 

"  Bo'sun,"  said  the  skipper,  when  the  ringing 
cheers  which  greeted  the  pilot's  little  speech  had  died 
away,  "  we  should  all  very  much  like,  I  know,  to  have 
a  final  word  from  you,  and  also  to  have  you  give  us  a 
closing  word  of  prayer.  I  know  you'll  be  glad  of  the 
chance,  so  go  ahead."  Saul,  who  had  been  drinking 
in  every  word  with  feelings  indescribable,  sprang  to  his 
feet  and  faced  the  ship's  company.  But  for  some 
moments  he  was  unable  to  get  a  word  out  because  of 
the  hearty  cheering  of  his  shipmates.  When  at  last 
their  affectionate  tributes  had  subsided  he  began : 
"  Captain  Vaughan,  pilot,  an'  friends,  what  can  I  say? 
My  heart's  so  full  I  can't  hardly  speak.  Just  think  of 
it.  God  saved  me,  made  my  work  a  delight  to  me 
'stead  of  a  weary  way  of  gettin'  a  livin',  filled  me  so  full 
of  his  love  that  I  had  to  show  it,  couldn't  help  it.  An' 
then,  all  these  things,  all  these  blessin's  that  would  be 
well  wuth  any  trouble  or  pains  to  get,  blessin's  which  I 
never  did  nothin'  for,  are  treated  as  if  they  was  good 
doin's  o'  mine,  an'  I'm  paid  for  'em  like  this.  What 
is  the  use  o'  me  tryin'  to  talk  to  you  about  it.  I'm 
so  happy  I  can't  talk.  If  workin'  chaps,  an'  'specially 
sailormen,  only  knew  how  good  a  thing  it  was  to  serve 
God,  what  an  example  to  the  churches  ships  an'  work- 
shops would  be  to  be  sure!  But  there  is  one  thing 
I'd  like  to  say,  an'  that  is,  that  I'm  connected  with  a 
little  mission  over  in  Rotherhithe,  an'  I  would  dearly 
love  for  as  many  of  you  as  ain't  leavin'  London  to 

239 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

come  over  an'  attend  some  o'  the  meetin's  there.  I 
promise  ye  a  treat.  Besides  that,  I'd  like  as  many  of 
ye  as  'aven't  got  no  regular  good  place  to  go  to  let  me 
do  what  I  can  to  get  ye  respectable  lodgin's  away  from 
sailor-town,  as  the  captain  says,  an'  perhaps  if  we  keep 
in  touch  with  the  dear  old  ship  we  may  make  another 
voyage  in  her.  If  not,  three  or  four  of  us  may  get  in 
a  ship  together.  An'  I'll  warrant  the  Lord  'd  make  use 
of  us. — An'  now,  oh,  dear,  lovin',  careful  Father,  do 
accept  all  the  thanks  of  our  full  hearts.  You've  done 
a  wonderful  work  in  this  ship ;  you've  saved  every  soul 
aboard.  We've  been  as  happy  as  any  ship's  company 
could  possibly  be.  You've  given  us  health,  you've 
given  us  good  weather,  filled  us  with  loving-kindness 
one  towards  another,  an'  brought  us  safe  home.  Now, 
we're  a-goin'  into  greater  dangers  than  there  is  at  sea. 
Lord  keep  us.  We  'aven't  got  the  strength — we'll  be 
just  like  children  let  loose ;  but  you  know  all  about  us. 
Keep  us  from  doin'  any  harm  to  ourselves  or  anybody 
else,  and  wherever  we  goes  let  us  bear  witness  for 
Jesus.  God  bless  our  dear  skipper,  our  officers,  God 
bless  us  every  one,  for  Jesus  Christ's  sake.  Amen." 

It  was  all  over,  and  back  flowed  the  tide  of  work. 
Ah,  how  they  worked,  those  Christian  sailors !  Men 
generally  do  put  their  backs  into  their  duty  when  com- 
ing up  the  river  homeward  bound,  if  they  have  never 
done  so  all  the  voyage,  but  these  men,  always  alert 
and  willing,  laboured  to-day  as  if  each  were  a  host  in 
himself.  Presently  the  ship  reached  Gravesend,  and 
with  a  perfect  hurricane  of  farewells  the  channel  pilot 
took  his  leave.  He  was  succeeded  by  the  river  pilot, 
a  totally  different  kind  of  man,  who  had  not  been  on 
board  five  minutes  before  he  rapped  out  a  tremendous 
oath  at  one  of  his  boat's  crew  who  had  in  some  way 

240 


Saul's  Return 

offended  him.  Captain  Vaughan,  who  was  standing 
near  him  at  the  moment,  said :  "  Pilot,  that's  the  first 
swear-word  I've  heard  for  five  months.  I'd  almost 
forgotten  that  men  were  such  fools  as  to  swear." 

"  Look  'ere,  cap'n,"  retorted  the  "  Mudlark,"  "  I 
ain't  under  yore  command,  an'  if  I  feels  like  cussin' 
an'  swearin'  I'm  a-goin'  t'  do  it,  see !  Pretty  fine  thing 
w'en  a  man  cawn't  swear  if  he  wants  to.  I  wonder 
wot  th'  'ell  next." 

"  Oh,  certainly,"  replied  the  skipper,  "  swear  if 
you  want  to,  if  you  think  it  does  you  any  good.  I 
can't  stop  you,  of  course,  though  I  should  like  to.  I 
only  said  that  I'd  almost  forgotten  that  men  were  such 
fools  as  to  swear." 

Now,  strange  as  it  may  appear  to  those  who  know 
the  painful  and  frequent  and  free  language  indulged  in 
by  river  workers  on  the  Thames,  that  pilot  did  not 
swear  any  more  while  he  was  on  board  the  Asteroid 
until  she  reached  the  dock.  He  caused  a  good  deal 
of  harmless  mirth  among  the  crew  by  issuing  his  orders 
sarcastically,  saying,  "  Wouldjer  kindly  oblige  me  by 
trimmin'  them  yawds  forrard  ?  "  or,  "  Will  somebody 
'ave  th'  goodness  t'  see  whether  the  anchors  's  all  clear 
for  lettin'  go  ?  "  or,  "  Do  yer  mind  givin'  her  a  little 
stawbud  'ellum  ?  "  But,  although  the  strain  must  have 
been  severe,  not  another  oath  escaped  his  lips  until, 
just  as  the  ship's  head  was  being  pointed  into  the  East 
India  Dock  basin,  a  lighterman,  whose  aim  of  getting 
pushed  into  the  basin  ahead  of  the  Asteroid  had  been 
frustrated,  launched  a  perfectly  tropical  squall  of  pro- 
fanity at  the  suffering  pilot.  That  burst  the  floodgates 
of  his  speech,  and  for  the  space  of  about  three  minutes 
he  gave  vent  to  his  long-pent-up  feelings.  When,  for 
sheer  lack  of  breath,  he  paused,  the  lighterman  looked 

241 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

up  at  him  with  a  quizzical  smile,  saying :  "  Lord  love 
yer,  Billy,  anybody'd  fink  you'd  ben  dum  fer  a  week. 
I  didn't  fink  you'd  got  it  in  yer.  Y'  awt  t'  keep  a  Sun- 
day-school, you  awt."  To  this  remark  he  made  no 
reply,  but  with  all  the  usual  skill  of  these  men  saw  the 
ship  safely  moored  in  her  berth.  As  soon  as  she  was 
fast  he  fled  ashore,  muttering  unintelligibly,  a  man  that 
had  met  with  a  problem  beyond  his  utmost  skill  to  solve. 

The  decks  cleared  up  neatly  and  all  as  a  careful 
mate  would  have  it,  Mr.  Carroll  sung  out  for  all  hands. 
When  they  mustered  he  said :  "  Boys,  I'm  goin'  to  say 
the  usually  welcome  words,  '  That'll  do,  everybody.' 
But  I  feel  I  must  say  good-bye  to  every  one  personally. 
I  do  hope  with  all  my  heart,  and  so  does  Mr.  Kerton, 
that  we  shall  all  be  shipmates  again.  Of  course  Cap- 
tain Vaughan  had  to  go,  but  before  he  went  he  told  me 
he'd  pay  off  at  Green's  Home  the  day  after  to-morrow 
in  the  afternoon,  and  if  any  of  you  that  are  not  going 
home  by  the  Board  o'  Trade  scheme  wants  any  money, 
I've  got  it  to  give  you."  Only  four  men  stepped  for- 
ward and  asked  for  a  sovereign  each ;  the  rest  had  all 
accepted  the  most  welcome  provision  made  by  the  laws 
for  the  protection  of  the  poor  sailor  from  the  swarming 
villainy  along  the  river  banks.  The  money  was  at  once 
handed  over,  and  then  each  man  stepped  forward  and 
gave  the  two  officers  a  hearty  hand-shake  and  good- 
bye. 

On  the  quay  there  waited  hungrily  several  indi- 
viduals whose  faces  alone  should  have  been  as  a  dan- 
ger signal  warning  homeward-bound  sailors  to  shun 
them  as  they  would  an  infected  corpse.  A  wise  law 
would  not  allow  these  fellows  on  board,  but  they  came 
as  near  as  they  dared,  and  whenever  they  saw  a  face 
over  the  rail  one  of  them  put  on  as  amiable  an  ex- 

242 


Saul's  Return 

pression  as  he  knew  how,  half-withdrawing  a  bottle 
from  his  pocket  and  beckoning  the  owner  of  the  face 
ashore.  It  is  difficult  to  imagine  the  chagrin  experi- 
enced by  these  landsharks  when  they  found  that  of  all 
the  crew  not  one  was  at  all  likely  to  fall  into  their 
nets.  How  savagely  they  cursed  as  they  saw  the  home- 
goers  leave  under  the  careful  supervision  of  the  B.  T. 
man,  and  the  four  remaining  chaps  sedately  walk  away 
with  Saul !  They  spat  out  their  opprobrium  at  the 
departing  men  as  long  as  it  was  safe  for  them  to  do  so, 
and  then,  baffled  at  every  point,  slunk  away  to  await 
the  coming  in  of  another  ship's  company  who  would  be 
less  carefully  prepared  to  meet  and  withstand  their 
diabolical  wiles.  So  happily  ended  the  voyage  of  the 
Asteroid,  inauspiciously  begun,  but  by  the  courage, 
ability,  and  Christian  perseverance  of  one  man  brought 
to  so  beautiful  an  issue  as  never  to  be  forgotten  by 
any  one  who  belonged  to  her  during  that  time. 


243 


CHAPTER    XXII 

A    CATASTROPHE   AT   THE    MISSION 

IT  is  disagreeably  necessary  to  turn  back  for  a  time 
from  the  peaceful,  happy  condition  of  things  experi- 
enced on  board  of  the  Asteroid  to  the  turbid  waters 
rapidly  rising  around  the  mission.  It  will  be  remem- 
bered how  high  the  tension  had  become  on  account  of 
the  desire  of  Brother  Jackson  to  oust  Jemmy  from  the 
position  of  superintendent.  On  the  Thursday  follow- 
ing, the  usual  mid-week  meeting  was  held  indoors,  the 
weather  being  far  too  inclement  now  for  open-air 
work,  and  there  was  a  fairly  good  attendance.  But 
the  whole  performance  was  perfunctory  in  the  extreme. 
There  was  no  life,  no  spirituality  in  the  meeting  at  all. 
How,  indeed,  could  there  be  under  the  circumstances? 
Outwardly,  at  all  events,  both  parties  observed  the 
compact  not  to  do  anything  until  the  question  should 
be  put  to  the  gathering  as  a  whole  on  Sunday  night. 
Except,  of  course,  the  issue  of  emphatic  invitations  to 
all  members  to  attend  who  possibly  could.  Yet  it  is 
undeniable  that  Jackson  did  do  a  great  deal  of  under- 
hand work  aided  by  those  who  favoured  his  claims, 
while  Jemmy  and  his  party,  as  far  as  they  could,  dis- 
missed the  whole  matter  from  their  minds  for  the 
present. 

On  Saturday  night,  however,  the  prayer-meeting, 
which  had  been  exceptionally  well  attended  of  late, 

244 


A   Catastrophe  at  the  Mission 

was  almost  deserted.  To  the  astonishment  of  Jemmy, 
only  the  old  members  of  the  mission  were  present,  with 
the  addition  of  Mary  Seton,  Woody,  and  Bill  Harrop, 
and  the  omission,  of  course,  of  the  defaulters  Jimson 
and  Jenkins.  And  there  was  a  noticeable  absence  of 
fervour  except  in  the  case  of  Bill  Harrop  and  Woody. 
Indeed,  the  former  bade  fair  to  be  one  of  those  won- 
derful spiritual  prodigies  that  from  the  outer  darkness 
seem  at  once  to  spring  into  the  most  perfect  light,  lib- 
erty, and  usefulness.  Woody  was  as  happy  as  usual, 
but,  as  he  had  ever  been  since  his  return  to  the  fold, 
very  penitential  over  his  backsliding,  and  overflowing 
with  gratitude  for  the  goodness  of  God  in  permitting 
him  to  come  back  to  peace.  But  neither  of  these 
cheery  souls  made  any  allusion  to  the  impending  crisis. 
From  anything  they  said  a  stranger  might  have  sup- 
posed that  the  affairs  of  the  mission  were  profoundly 
peaceful  and  prosperous.  Jemmy,  for  a  marvel, 
prayed  not  at  all.  He  wondered  at  himself,  and  with 
reason,  for  his  spiritual  experiences  of  late  had  been 
of  a  disturbing  kind.  Yet,  such  is  the  perversity  of 
poor  human  nature,  that  even  with  the  prospect  be- 
fore him  of  the  work  which  he  had  given  so  large  a 
slice  of  his  life  to  being  broken  down,  he  could  not 
bring  himself  to  pray  for  the  special  Providence  of 
God  to  interpose  and  avert  the  calamity. 

Just  before  the  close  of  the  meeting  Jemmy's  uncle, 
old  Jack  Maskery,  quietly  glided  in  and  took  his  seat 
alongside  of  his  brother.  A  whispered  word  or  two 
passed  between  the  two  old  warriors,  and  presently 
Jack  stood  up.  There  was  a  deep  hush  over  all  as  he 
began  :  "  Dear  Farver,  we've  ben  arskin'  ye  fur  a  bless- 
in'  on  ahr  coming  tergevvar  ter-morrer,  arskin'  yer 
ter  bless  ahr  effits  t'  exten'  thy  kingdom.  An'  all  the 

245 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

w'ile  some  on  us  'at  orter  know  better  'r  feelin'  'fraid 
'at  arter  all  these  years  o'  blessin'  th'  wuk  we  ben  tryin' 
t'  do  fur  thee,  yore  a-goin'  t'  let  up  on  erse ;  a-goin'  t' 
let  erse  be  put  t'  shame.  No,  Lord,  that  you  ain't. 
You  never  done  it  yit,  an'  you  ain't  goin'  t'  begin  nah. 
If  there's  goin'  to  be  a  bust  up  'ere  in  this  mission 
it's  corse  it's  wanted.  Any'ow,  you  knows  best, 
Lord.  There  ain't  or  ortn't  t'  be  any  doubts  abaht 
thet.  Gord  bless  erse  all.  Keep  erse  steadfast,  im- 
movable, alwus  abahndin'  in  th'  wuk  o'  th'  Lord, 
forasmuch  as  we  know  'at  ahr  labour  is  not  in  vain 
in  the  Lord.  Amen." 

Then  Pug  pronounced  the  benediction,  and  the 
little  company  passed  out  into  the  bleak  night,  all  ex- 
cept the  three  Maskerys,  who  remained  behind  to  dis- 
cuss the  situation.  The  two  old  brothers  were  very 
emphatic  upon  the  "  all-rightness "  of  the  mission, 
while  at  the  same  time  sympathizing  deeply  with  Jem- 
my. They  knew  what  he  must  be  feeling,  much  better 
than  he  thought  they  did,  for  had  they  not  often  gone 
through  much  the  same  experience  many  times.  But 
what  they  did  not  know  was  the  suffering  he  was  en- 
during by  reason  of  that  evil  suggestion  he  had  enter- 
tained about  the  money.  The  words  of  his  father  con- 
cerning the  possible  presence  among  them  of  one  who 
was  not  all  right  with  the  Lord  clung  to  him  and  would 
not  be  got  rid  of.  However,  to  his  great  relief,  the  two 
rugged  old  Christians  proceeded  to  discuss  ways  and 
means  in  case  of  a  split,  and  this  turning  his  mind  into 
another  channel  did  him  rood.  At  last  it  was  decided 
that,  in  the  event  of  the  impending  break  being  of  a 
serious  nature,  and  drawing  off  a  majority  of  the 
congregation,  Pug  and  Jack  should  beat  up  their 
friends  and  endeavour  to  persuade  them  to  tide  the 

246 


A  Catastrophe  at  the  Mission 

little  gathering  over  its  temporary  troubles.  And  with 
this  resolve  they  parted  for  their  several  homes. 

Sunday  evening  saw  the  Hall  packed  to  overflow- 
ing, for  not  only  were  there  no  absentees  among  the 
members,  but,  allured  by  the  prospect  of  a  row,  pre- 
monitions of  which  unseemly  proceeding  had  somehow 
got  circulated  in  the  neighbourhood,  there  was  a 
goodly  muster  of  those  who  had  no  Christian  feeling 
whatever — only  a  wish  to  see  what  they  termed  a  lark. 
After  the  preliminary  hymn-singing  and  prayers,  Jem- 
my rose,  and  taking  for  his  text  the  familiar  John  iii, 
1 6,  launched  into  a  fervent  appeal  to  those  present  to 
hear  the  voice  of  God,  to  come  and  be  saved.  Never 
had  he  spoken  with  so  much  fire  blended  with  so  much 
pathos.  Never,  apparently,  had  his  hearers  manifested 
such  keen  interest  in  his  remarks.  But,  had  he  been  ten 
times  as  fervently  eloquent,  it  is  doubtful  whether  he 
would  have  made  any  real  impression,  because  the  ma- 
jority of  his  audience,  having  come  to  hear  something 
entirely  different,  had  a  certain  sense  of  grievance  at 
Jemmy's  unwarrantably  taking  up  their  time  with  what 
they  felt  that  they  could  hear  whenever  they  liked.  So, 
when  he  suddenly  brought  his  address  to  an  end  by  an- 
nouncing that  after  the  hymn  had  been  sung  Brother 
Jackson  would  address  the  meeting,  there  was  percep- 
tible intensifying  of  interest,  all  faces  lost  their  some- 
what dreamy  look,  and  the  hymn  was  sung  with  great 
vigour. 

While  the  last  verse  was  proceeding,  Brother  Jack- 
son made  his  way  to  the  platform,  being  met  at  its 
break  by  Pug,  who  whispered  something  in  his  ear. 
He  nodded  and  took  a  seat  by  Jemmy's  side  at  the 
rear  of  the  platform.  As  soon  as  the  congregation  had 
resumed  their  seats,  Pug  limped  forward  and  said: 
17  247 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

"  Brevren  an'  sisters,  most  on  ye  know  what's  in  the 
wind.  I  needn't  remind  ye  of  all  that  my  son  'as  ben 
an'  done  in  this  'ere  nayburwood ;  you  all  knows  it  as 
well  as  wot  I  do.  But  Bruvver  Jackson,  'e  finks  as  'ow 
us  old  'ans  at  the  work  in  this  mission's  gittin'  stale, 
an'  that  they  ort  t'  be  some  fresh  blood  in  the  conduc' 
of  matters  'ere.  'E's  nah  goin'  t'  address  yer  on  th' 
subjec',  an'  arterward  we'll  'ave  a  show  of  'ands  to  see 
oose  in  faviour  of  'im  being  superintendent  'stead  o'  my 
son.  I  sh'll  'ave  a  little  more  t'  say  arter  'e's  finished, 
but  at  present  it's  'is  show.  Bruvver  Jackson,  will  you 
take  the  meetin'  ?  " 

The  attention  was  now  earnest  enough  to  justify 
the  most  exacting  speaker.  Brother  Jackson  advanced 
to  the  rail,  moistened  his  lips  with  his  tongue  twice  or 
thrice,  cleared  his  throat  nervously,  and  at  last  said : 
"  Dear  friends,  my  task  to-night  ain't  a  easy  one.  God 
knows  I  shou'd  be  the  last  to  say  a  word  agen  Jemmy 
or  his  father,  or  anybody  else  connected  with  this  mis- 
sion. I  owe  'em  all  too  much  for  that.  I  don't  believe 
that  you  could  find,  if  you  searched  London  through,  a 
better  job  than  there  is  here.  But  we've  all  gotter  re- 
member that  a  man  may  be  very  godly,  very  lovable, 
and  very  kind,  an'  yet  be  a  very  bad  business  man. 
An'  in  a  mission  like  this  you  can't  afford  to  have  a 
bad  business  man  for  a  superintendent.  There  isn't 
any  outside  help;  all  the  funds  'as  got  to  come  from 
the  poorest  of  the  poor  (I  know  I'm  a-wearin'  my  shirts 
till  they  nearly  fall  to  pieces  'cause  of  the  drain  the  mis- 
sion is  on  me),  an'  if  these  funds  are  not  carefully 
nursed  and  wisely  managed  you  know  what'll  happen, 
don't  you?  If  not,  I'll  tell  you.  Before  this  winter's 
gone  you'll  have  the  landlord  bundlin'  you  out  an' 
collarin'  the  Hall  that  'as  cost  so  much  labour  and 

248 


A  Catastrophe  at  the  Mission 

money  " — ("  Neither  of  it  yours,"  muttered  Jemmy.) — 
"  Well,  what  I  propose  is  this,  that  we  have  an  election 
for  superintendent,  treasurer,  secretary,  and  deacons 
in  proper  form,  every  member  of  the  gathering  being 
entitled  to  vote,  and  when  the  election's  over,  that  we 
have  a  proper  set  of  rules  drawn  up  and  auditors  ap- 
pointed to  examine  all  vouchers  and  deeds  and  every- 
thing else  belonging  to  the  mission.  All  of  you  who 
think  that  what  I  propose  ought  to  be  done,  please 
hold  up  your  hands."  Immediately  the  hands  of  every- 
body in  the  Hall  went  up,  the  only  exceptions  being 
the  old  members — Stevens,  Salmon,  Burn,  and  their 
wives,  aided  by  Woody,  Bill  Harrop,  and  the  Mask- 
erys.  With  a  triumphant  flush  on  his  face  Jackson 
turned  to  Pug  and  said  :  "  Well,  shall  we  proceed  to  the 
election?  " 

Stiffly  Pug  rose,  came  to  the  front  of  the  platform, 
and  quietly  said :  "  My  friends,  ahr  Bruvver  Jackson 
'as  invited  yer  t'  elect  the  brevren  ye  choose  ter  run 
this  'ere  mission.  But  'e's  fergot  ter  mention  that  four 
on  us  'as  made  ahrselves  responsible  fur  th'  place,  an' 
it  falls  t'  ahr  lot  t'  make  up  any  deficits  in  payment. 
Nah,  that  bein'  th'  case,  I  got  ter  remind  'im — an'  you, 
too — 'at  us  four  'ave  got  the  say  in  this  matter.  An'  we 
don't  choose  that  any  of  them  what's  come  inter  the 
mission  sense  we've  born'  th'  burden  an'  'eat  of  the  day 
shall  rob  us  of  ahr  interest  in  it.  We  think  we've 
earned  ahr  right,  and  we  mean  t'  stick  to  it.  'Ave  yore 
election  if  ye  like,  but  understand,  please,  'at  if  ye 
decide  t'  put  us  aht,  yer  decide  ter  put  yerselves  aht 
of  this  'All ;  yer  must  go  an'  git  some'rs  else  t'  wusshup 
in.  It's  very  simple.  It  almost  breaks  my  pore  ole 
'eart  t'  'ave  t'  say  this,  but  'tain't  th'  fust  time  I've  'ad 
t'  face  th'  same  kind  o'  fing.  I  ain't  got  nuffink  t'  say 

249 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

agin  anybody;  I'm  only  a-tellin'  yer  the  plain  facts. 
Now  go  a'ed  wiv  yer  votin'." 

Jackson  sprang  to  his  feet  instantly,  crying:  "I 
thought  as  much.  These  'ere  Maskerys  are  runnin' 
this  place  as  a  little  private  concern.  I  didn't  say  so 
afore,  but  now  it's  been  so  plainly  put  afore  us  all  that 
what  we've  got  to  do — those  of  us  who  don't  agree  with 
having  a  matter  like  this  made  a  family  affair  of — is  to 
go  out  an',  as  Mr.  Maskery,  Senior,  suggests,  get  a 
place  of  our  own.  All  them  as  are  in  favour  of  doing 
so  follow  me  out."  Alas  for  the  fickleness  of  human 
nature !  In  spite  of  all  that  had  gone  before,  notwith- 
standing the  blameless  record  of  the  Maskerys  and 
the  history  of  the  mission,  there  was  such  an  exodus  at 
Jackson's  invitation  that  in  five  minutes  only  twelve 
persons  remained  to  support  the  original  members  of 
the  Wren  Lane  Mission.  Why  struggle  to  find  an  ex- 
planation? Many  vastly  more  important  popular 
movements  have  been  made  with  just  as  slender  a  foun- 
dation to  go  upon,  and  the  virtue  of  true  gratitude  is 
one  that  is  rarely  exercised  by  communities,  much 
more  rarely  even  than  it  is  by  individuals.  But  what 
principally  troubled  Jemmy  were  the  insulting  remarks 
passed  by  sundry  people  as  they  passed  out — reflec- 
tions upon  him  which  he  knew  to  be  undeserved.  For, 
in  spite  of  what  people  say,  undeserved  reproach  is  far 
harder  to  bear  than  that  which  has  been  earned. 

The  little  company  left  behind  felt  very  forlorn  and 
lonely  as  they  looked  round  the  Hall,  so  much  too  big 
for  them  now.  Each  thought  mournfully  of  the  months 
still  to  pass  before  the  open-air  campaign  could  be 
entered  upon  again  and  new  converts  made  to  swell 
their  numbers,  for  each  of  them  knew  how  little  hope 
there  was  of  getting  audiences  into  the  Hall  during 

250 


A   Catastrophe  at  the  Mission 

the  winter.  They  sat  speechlessly  for  a  few  minutes, 
until  Bill  Harrop  rose  and  said  quietly :  "  Brevren  an' 
sisters,  this  'ere's  a  bit  of  a  knock ;  I  ain't  sayin'  it  isn't ; 
but  I  ben  a-readin'  that  there  yarn  in  the  Book  'bout 
Gideon,  and  I  reckon  'e  'ad  a  good  deal  'eavier  knock 
than  this  w'en  all  his  army  melted  away  'cept  them 
three  'underd.  Our  congregashun's  left  us,  but  God 
ain't,  an'  you  mark  my  words  there's  some  great  bless- 
in'  'id  in  this  fur  us  if  we'll  only  wait  an'  see  th'  salva- 
tion of  the  Lord.  I  don't  know  as  it's  much  good 
sayin'  a  great  deal  to-night,  but  afore  we  parts  let  me 
remind  yer  'at  that  pore  wretch  is  a-comin'  aht  ter- 
morrer — Jem  Paterson,  I  mean.  Now,  I  serjests  as 
Jemmy  an'  'is  farver  goes  up  an'  meets  'im  w'en  'e 
do  come  aht,  'cause  I  know  'e  ain't  got  nowhere  to  go, 
an'  aht  er  th'  mission  funds,  in  spite  o'  th'  straits  we're 
in,  they  sets  'im  up  wiv  a  donkey  an'  barrer  an'  some 
market  money.  Firty  bob'll  abaht  do  it,  an'  I  know  it 
ort  ter  be  done.  Wot  d'ye  s'y  ?  " 

"  Say,"  almost  shouted  Stevens,  the  tug-boat  skip- 
per, "  w'y,  I  say  certainly.  An'  wot's  more,  there's  the 
money."  (Flinging  it  on  the  platform.)  "  I  brought  it 
to-night  out  of  a  bit  of  a  bonus  I  had  comin'  ter  me. 
I  had  to  make  up  as  far  as  I  could  what  I  knew  would 
be  short,  but  I'm  shore  you're  right,  Bill,  that's  what 
we  ought  to  do.  It'll  be  more  pow'ful  among  that 
rough  lot  as  he  knows  and  lives  among  than  all  the 
talk  in  the  world.  Le'ss  ask  a  blessin'  on  it  an'  on  him." 

Immediately  the  little  group  closed  up,  and,  for- 
getting all  their  sorrow  and  difficulties,  they  prayed 
with  all  their  hearts  that  this  man  might  be  saved, 
might  be  added  to  their  trophies  of  grace;  for  be  it 
noted  that  although  they  could  not  help  being  resentful 
at  Jackson,  their  feelings  of  tenderness  towards  the  new 

251 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

converts  whom  he  had  led  away  remained  unchanged. 
They  rose  from  their  knees  refreshed,  comforted,  and 
with  many  expressions  of  goodwill  parted  and  repaired 
to  their  respective  homes. 

That  was  a  delightful  journey  made  by  Jemmy  and 
his  father  the  next  morning  to  the  grim  portals  of  the 
prison,  only  tempered  by  the  thought  that  perhaps 
Jackson  might  be  there  also  and  cause  some  little  com- 
plication. Even  that  slight  drawback  to  the  joy  of 
their  merciful  errand  was  removed  when  they  saw  him 
in  his  uniform  parading  his  beat,  and  knew  that  he  was 
safely  employed  for  some  hours  at  any  rate.  To  do 
him  justice,  he  did  not  know  for  certain  the  date  of 
Paterson's  release,  or  he  would  have  made  some  ar- 
rangements for  his  being  met  and  helped  in  case  of 
the  mission  people  either  forgetting  or  being  disin- 
clined to  help.  For  it  must  not  be  supposed  that  he 
was  a  bad  man  or  an  unconscientious  one.  He  hon- 
estly strove  to  do  what  he  believed  to  be  right,  and  that 
with  all  his  heart.  But  then  so  did  many  of  the 
mediaeval  monks  who  inflicted  nameless  cruelties  upon 
the  quivering  bodies  of  those  whom  they  deemed  to  be 
heretics,  feeling  that  the  bodily  pain  was  not  worth 
granting  a  moment's  consideration  if  haply  the  soul 
might  be  plucked  from  the  everlasting  burnings. 

When  the  two  unconventional  philanthropists 
arrived  at  the  prison  gate  they  found  a  curious  gather- 
ing. Salvationists  and  members  of  the  Prison  Gate 
Brigade  were  there  ready  to  welcome  the  punished  one, 
and  to  let  him  see  that  to  them  at  any  rate  he  was  no 
pariah ;  that  the  punishment  he  had  undergone  should 
not,  if  they  could  help  it,  be  mercilessly  augmented  by 
the  prevention  of  the  penitent  getting  honest  work.  It 
is  one  of  the  blackest  blots  on  our  police  system  that 

252 


A   Catastrophe  at  the  Mission 

a  man  who  has,  according  to  our  laws,  expiated  his 
crime  (and  legally  no  one  can  be  punished  twice  for  the 
same  offence)  should  be  hunted  down  when  trying  to 
earn  an  honest  living;  should  be  shadowed  by  detec- 
tives eager  to  find  him  tripping  so  that  they  may  be 
commended  for  their  vigilance ;  and  should,  in  sheer 
despair  of  ever  being  able  to  reinstate  himself,  sink 
back  into  criminal  courses  again.  Of  course  it  will 
be  said,  it  has  been  said,  that  this  is  an  exaggerated, 
a  distorted  view  of  the  case ;  but,  unhappily,  it  is  nothing 
of  the  kind,  and  every  one  who  has  ever  had  anything 
to  do  with  the  attempted  reclamation  of  discharged 
prisoners  knows  that  it  is  not,  to  their  bitter,  bitter  dis- 
appointment. 

None  of  these  considerations  troubled  Jemmy  and 
his  father.  They  were  on  that  spot  for  a  definite  pur- 
pose, and  the  possible  future  frustrations  of  their  be- 
nevolent desires  did  not  enter  into  their  calculations. 
They  gazed  understandingly  upon  little  furtive  groups 
or  shrinking  individuals — upon  the  two  or  three  pro- 
fessional thieves  showing  their  sense  of  comradeship 
by  waiting  for  a  pal  who  had  done  his  time :  saw  with 
pity  the  wretched-looking  woman,  her  face  hardly  yet 
healed  of  the  wounds  branded  upon  it  by  the  man  who 
had  just  expiated  that  shameful  act,  and  yet  waiting 
to  welcome  him  back  to  her  battered  bosom  with 
freest,  fullest  forgiveness,  and  they  thought  of  the  all- 
covering  love  of  God.  Suddenly  the  small  door,  open- 
ing a  little  way,  allowed  a  man  to  slip  out,  and  closed 
again.  He  melted  into  one  of  the  groups  and  disap- 
peared as  if  he  had  been  spirited  away.  One  after 
another  emerged  in  the  same  way  and  departed,  all 
but  one  boy  of  about  fourteen,  who  seemed  to  have  no 
one  to  welcome  him.  Leaving  Jemmy  to  watch  for 

253 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

Paterson's  coming,  Pug  limped  towards  the  lad,  and 
presently  succeeded  in  winning  his  confidence  and 
persuading  him  to  come  and  share  for  awhile  the  little 
place  that  was  all  Pug's  very  own. 

And  then  came  Paterson,  hearty  and  healthy- 
looking,  but  with  downcast  eyes,  as  if  he  wished  not 
to  be  seen  by  any  of  his  old  associates  who  might  be 
there.  He  needed  not  the  precaution.  None  of  them 
had  come.  But  Jemmy  in  his  impulsive  way  sprang 
towards  him,  and  clutching  both  his  hands,  cried : 
"  W'y,  Gord  bless  ye,  old  man ;  yer  look  a  fair  treat. 
S'pose  they  ben  a-feedin'  ye  up  th'  larst  week  or  two. 
Never  mine,  come  on  outer  this  ;  it's  no  plice  for  'spect- 
able  people  like  you  an'  me.  Now,  I  wants  ter  tell  yer 
somefink,"  talking  very  fast,  and  beckoning  his  father 
and  the  waif  to  come  along,  as  if  afraid  he  might  not  be 
able  to  hold  his  prisoner.  "  We've  got  a  bit  o'  stuff  for 
yer.  A  friend  of  ourn  'as  put  up  a  barrer  an'  such  a 
slap-up  moke,  if  yer  try  at  all  you'd  orter  take  fust 
prize  wiv  'im  at  the  fust  donkey  show  as  ever  is.  An' 
there's  a  few  og  lef  fur  market  money,  so  yer  won't 
'ave  ter  run  inter  debt  fur  anyfink.  An'  if  ye  don't  do 
wot  you  orter  at  fust,  well,  come  an'  look  us  up  agin. 
We  can  feel  for  yer,  yer  know." 

"  Jemmy,"  said  the  quivering  man,  "  I  ben  tryin'  t' 
git  a  word  in  edgeways,  but  yer  won't  let  me.  I  carn't 
jine  yore  meetin'." 

"Well,"  ejaculated  Jemmy,  "  oo  wants  yer  to?  I 
don't,  I  know.  I  woodn't  'ave  yer  if  yer  didn't  come 
free  and  full  o'  yer  own  accord.  Not  me.  No ;  you 
do  wot  ye  like,  an'  go  w'are  ye  like,  only  we'll  all  pray 
'at  ye  may  do  wot's  right  and  go  w'are  ye  orter."  That 
stopped  the  conversation,  for  Paterson  was  choking. 
He  had  struck  something  quite  beyond  his  compre- 

254 


A   Catastrophe  at  the  Mission 

hension,  and  its  incidence  deprived  him  of  speech. 
And  Jemmy  was  also  much  moved,  for  he  felt  in  the 
very  marrow  of  his  bone  that  in  what  he  was  saying 
and  doing  he  was  most  highly  honoured ;  that  his  fall 
from  grace,  all  unknown  to  anybody  on  earth,  had  been 
forgiven,  and  the  joy  of  the  reinstated  ones  was  his. 

In  due  time  they  reached  the  Hall,  where  punctu- 
ally, according  to  promise,  Skipper  Stevens  had  caused 
the  donkey  and  barrow  to  be  in  readiness.  And  then, 
handing  over  fifteen  shillings  for  a  nest-egg,  Jemmy 
and  his  father  shook  hands  heartily  with  Paterson  and 
bade  him  God-speed.  He  did  not  reply  because  he 
could  not,  but  his  face  told  its  own  story  as  he  flung 
himself  into  the  barrow  and  drove  away. 

"  Jemmy,  my  son,"  said  Pug,  "  the  Lord's  a-goin' 
t'  bless  us.  I  ain't  ben  so  'appy  fur  a  long  time  as  I 
am  to-day.  'Ere  we  are,  'avin'  ben  privileged  to  do  a 
bit  of  'is  own  work  'smornin',  a  bit  o'  wuk  as  the 
bigges'  chutch  on  earth  'd  be  prahd  t'  claim  a  'and  in. 
An'  nah  you  run  along  'ome  w'ile  I  take  this  pore  lad 
t'  my  little  drum  an'  giv'  'im  somefink  t'  eat,  an'  arter- 
ward  see  wot  can  be  done  t'  keep  'im  aht  of  trouble  in 
th'  fucher. — Good-mornin',  boy,  good-mornin',  and 
Gord  bless  yer."  Heart  full,  Jemmy  silently  shook 
hands  with  his  father  and  the  boy,  and  turned  his  steps 
homeward.  When  he  arrived  he  went  straight  in 
through  the  open  door  of  his  little  house  to  his  parlour, 
hoping  that  his  wife  would  be  too  busy  to  notice  his 
entrance  and  scold  him  for  "  wasting  so  much  time  " 
on  an  object  of  which  she  disapproved.  And  when  he 
turned  the  handle  of  the  parlour-door  and  strode  in, 
there  was  Saul  sitting  in  the  arm-chair  with  Mrs.  Mask- 
ery  facing  him  on  another,  her  arms  folded  and  a  beam- 
ing smile  on  her  face. 

255 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

It  would  be  a  hopeless  task  for  me  to  attempt  a 
description  of  Jemmy's  behaviour,  much  less  his  feel- 
ings on  thus  beholding  the  friend  whose  presence  had 
been  so  greatly  longed  for  by  him.  The  affection  that 
one  man  often  bears  to  another  is  one  of  the  most 
sacred  and  beautiful  things  that  it  is  possible  to  witness 
on  earth.  But  it  does  not  lend  itself  to  description. 
David's  lament  for  Jonathan  is  the  most  beautiful  and 
wonderful  attempt  to  describe  the  glorious  well-spring 
of  pure  love  (nearest  to  God's)  that  one  man  may  bear 
to  another,  but  even  that  is  powerful  more  by  reason 
of  what  it  suggests  than  what  it  says.  The  story  of 
Damon  and  Pythias  may  be  a  myth,  but  it  does  not  in 
the  least  exaggerate  the  depth  of  love  felt  and  practised 
between  many  men  to-day — a  love  that  rises  high 
above  all  earthly  considerations,  and  touches  the  very 
heart  of  the  Most  High  God. 

For  a  few  moments  Saul  and  Jemmy  stared  at  one 
another  speechlessly.  Saul  recovered  himself  first, 
rose  and  seized  Jemmy's  outstretched  hands  in  both 
his  own,  saying :  "  Dear  old  chap,  I  can't  tell  you  how 
glad  I  am  to  see  ye.  I've  ben  longin'  fur  a  sight  of  ye 
all  until  I  was  half-crazy,  and  the  voyage  wasn't  a  long 
one  either.  How  are  ye  gettin'  on  at  the  mission? 
Mrs.  Maskery  here's  been  a-tellin'  me  of  yer  health 
an'  yer  struggles,  and  some  troubles  you  been  havin', 
but  I  want  t'  hear  all  about  it  from  you." 

"  All  right,  Saul,"  said  Mrs.  Maskery,  "  I'll  git  ye 
t'  excuse  me.  I  got  my  work  t'  do,  an'  it  won't  be 
put  orf  like  'is  will.  'E'll  tork  ye  blind  an'  deaf  if 
you'll  let  'im.  But  there,  ye  know  'e  will.  I'll  see  ye 
later  on."  As  she  departed,  Jemmy,  drawing  a  chair  up 
to  Saul's  side,  burst  into  a  disconnected  and  not  very 
lucid  account  of  the  happenings  of  the  last  few  months. 

256 


A  Catastrophe  at  the  Mission 

It  is  difficult  to  imagine  the  relief  he  felt  at  being  able 
to  do  this.  It  should  be  remembered,  however,  that 
since  Saul's  departure  he  had  never  enjoyed  such  an 
opportunity;  he  had  never  been  in  any  sympathetic 
person's  company  who  did  not  know  as  much  about 
these  matters  as  he  did  himself.  But  above  all,  there 
was  one  matter  which  had  long  burdened  his  heart, 
about  which  he  had  been  unable  to  speak  to  a  soul — 
his  meditated,  yes,  practically  accomplished  dishonesty. 
This  he  now  confessed  to  Saul,  certain  that  he  would 
find  perfect  sympathy  and  consideration.  The  recital 
made  Saul's  heart  bleed,  and,  unable  to  say  a  word,  he 
could  only  grip  Jemmy's  hand  tighter,  and  look  into  his 
face  with  humid  eyes  from  which  beamed  perfect  love. 

The  story  ended,  Saul  began  his  yarn.  His  sole 
auditor  was  entranced,  astounded.  Jemmy's  breath 
came  in  short,  thick  gasps,  his  mouth  twitched  with 
uttermost  sympathy,  and  occasionally  a  whispered 
"  Bless  the  dear  Lord !  "  broke  from  his  lips.  Such  a 
listener  would  have  been  a  treasure  to  any  speaker,  but 
as  a  listener  to  such  a  story  as  Saul  had  to  tell  Jemmy 
was  pre-eminent.  Both  the  men  were  lost  in  the  con- 
templation of  what  God  had  wrought,  and  the  time  flew 
by  utterly  unnoticed  until  at  last  Mrs.  Maskery  burst 
in,  crying:  "There, Saul, wot'd  I  tell  yer?  Once  git  'im 
started  you'd  never  make  'im  leave  orf  'cept  by  force. 
'E's  the  orflest  jaw-me-dead  I  ever  see,  an' " 

"  Excuse  me,  Mrs.  Maskery,"  interpolated  Saul, 
"  let's  be  just.  I've  ben  doin'  all  the  talkin'  fur  a  long 
time,  an'  a  better  or  more  patient  listener  man  never 
had.  But  let's  see  what  th'  time  is."  And  looking  at 
his  watch,  Saul  exclaimed :  "  Why,  Jemmy,  my  lad, 
no  wonder  your  wife  got  impatient  to  know  what  was 
goin'  on.  We've  ben  a-talkin'  fur  three  'ours." 

257 


CHAPTER  XXIII 

A   BRIGHTER  DAY  DAWNS 

AMONG  the  many  interesting  details  which  Saul 
had  acquainted  Jemmy  with  was  the  determination  of 
a  portion  of  the  Asteroid's  crew — those  who  had  no 
homes — to  come  over  to  Rotherhithe  and  lodge  with 
Saul  for  a  time.  To  think  that  the  little  open-air  meet- 
ing on  the  "  Waste  "  would  be  re-enforced  by  such  a 
sturdy  band  of  recruits  to  the  good  cause,  won  by  his 
own  child  in  the  faith  too,  was  for  Jemmy  most  delight- 
ful and  uplifting — so  much  so  that  he  was  hardly  able 
to  contain  himself  for  joyful  anticipation  of  Sunday,  or 
refrain  from  fearing  lest  the  weather  should  be,  as  it 
had  been  of  late,  utterly  inclement.  He  got  the  friend 
who  had  painted  the  motto  on  the  centre  beam  of  the 
Hall  to  draw  up  a  big  flaring  bill,  which  was  stuck  up 
outside  the  Hall,  and  notified  all  and  sundry  that  a 
band  of  converted  sailors  would  be  present  at  the  meet- 
ings on  Thursday  and  Sunday,  both  of  which  would  be 
held  on  the  "  Waste,"  weather  permitting.  And  wher- 
ever he  went,  he  spread  the  news  and  begged  his  hearers 
to  do  the  same. 

In  consequence  of  his  efforts  in  this  direction,  the 
Hall  on  Thursday  was  fairly  well  filled — much  better, 
indeed,  than  he  had  hoped  for.  But  many  of  the  audi- 
ence came  from  local  chapels,  moved  by  curiosity  to 
see  and  hear  a  band  of  converted  sailors.  Saul,  of 

258 


A  Brighter  Day  Dawns 

course,  was  quite  in  his  element,  and  spoke  with  his 
usual  fervour  and  force,  but  his  friends  from  the  ship 
were  nervous  and  shy,  as  might  naturally  be  expected. 
However,  the  meeting  went  with  a  grand  swing,  and  a 
few  of  the  malcontents  who  broke  away  with  Jackson 
on  the  previous  Sunday,  repenting  of  their  hasty  de- 
cision, came  back  again,  quietly  hoping  that  they 
would  not  be  spoken  to  about  their  temporary  dis- 
loyalty. Best  of  all,  Paterson  was  there,  sitting  right 
at  the  back,  and  looking  wistfully  at  Jemmy.  The  lat- 
ter soon  spied  him,  and  at  the  first  opportunity  made 
his  way  towards  him  and  entreated  him  to  come  to  the 
front.  He  firmly  resisted  all  Jemmy's  importunities, 
saying  in  effect  that  when  he  had  proved  by  his  life  that 
he  really  was  a  changed  man,  he  would  confess  Christ 
openly  before  all  the  world  if  need  be,  but  at  present 
he  felt  that  his  place  was  that  of  one  who  was  only  just 
allowed  inside  the  doors  of  such  a  place.  He  handed 
five  shillings  over  to  Jemmy  as  partial  repayment  of 
what  had  been  given  him  to  start  him  again,  and  grate- 
fully admitted  that  he  had  been  doing  very  well. 

Two  incidents  also  occurred  at  this  meeting  well 
worth  recalling,  not  merely  for  their  bearing  upon  the 
history  of  the  mission,  but  for  their  intrinsic  impor- 
tance. One  was  the  coming  out  of  a  young  commer- 
cial clerk,  brought  up  in  the  strictest  forms  of  religion, 
but  until  then  utterly  case-hardened  to  Christian  influ- 
ences, and  the  other  the  falling  in  love  of  a  beautiful 
young  seamstress  of  unimpeachable  character  with 
Saul.  It  may  sound  almost  brutally  premature  to  state 
this  fact  in  such  an  abrupt  manner,  but  I  do  not  know 
that  any  good  end  would  be  served  by  making  a  mys- 
tery of  it  or  dragging  if  out  by  slow  degrees  through 
half  a  dozen  pages.  And  of  the  two  incidents  men- 

259 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

tioned  I  have  intentionally  given  it  the  second  place, 
because  I  am  as  sure  as  it  is  possible  to  be  of  such  a 
thing,  that  the  conversion  of  that  clerk  had  a  far  more 
widely  reaching  importance  than  Saul's  first  (and  last) 
love  story.  Therefore  I  must  go  on  to  say  that  this 
young  man,  in  the  full  vigour  of  manhood  (he  had  just 
come  of  age),  came  deliberately  forward  and  confessed 
his  faith  in  Christ,  and  announced  his  determination 
to  cast  in  his  lot  with  God's  people.  And  as  an  earnest 
of  his  sincerity  he  then  and  there  handed  in  a  goodly 
portion  of  his  savings  (£5),  and  offered  to  serve  in  any 
capacity  that  might  be  required  of  him.  I  do  not  wish 
to  anticipate,  but  I  feel  compelled  to  say  that  William 
Maylie  was,  and  is,  the  most  perfect  example  of  what 
the  grace  of  God  can  make  of  a  man  that  ever  I  saw. 
He  now  holds  a  fairly  high  position  in  his  business. 
Worldly  matters  have  prospered  with  him,  but  he  is 
just  the  same  humble  Christian,  eager  to  be  doing 
good,  and  caring  not  one  jot  for  authority  or  fame,  as 
he  was  the  first  night  of  his  conversion. 

As  I  write  these  words  I  cannot  help  wondering 
how  they  will  be  received.  Not  that  I  should  fear  the 
world's  hostile  criticism  at  all,  but  whether  impartial 
people  will  believe  in  the  reality  of  the  individuals 
whose  characters  I  have  vainly  been  trying  to  give  an 
impression  of.  Well,  it  is  no  wonder  that,  remember- 
ing the  strange  monsters  that  have  been  limned  by 
popular  novelists  of  late,  and  labelled  "  Christians  " 
with  or  without  qualifying  prefixes,  I  should  feel 
doubtful  about  the  reception  of  real  Christians — not  in- 
vented ones.  All  I  can  say  is  that  if  you  who  read 
will  not  believe  that  there  does  exist  such  people  as 
I  have  tried  to  portray,  the  loss  will  be  yours,  not  mine. 
As  I  am  never  weary  of  saying,  truth  is  unaffected  by 

260 


A  Brighter  Day   Dawns 

disbelief  in  it.  But  the  unbeliever  is  affected,  for  his 
disbelief  in  the  truth  may  prevent  his  attainment  of 
happiness. 

At  the  Saturday  evening  prayer-meeting  there  was 
a  full  muster.  All  day  Friday  and  a  good  deal  of  Sat- 
urday, Saul  and  his  four  shipmates  had  been  doing  the 
historic  sights  of  London,  soaking  up  with  all  the  nov- 
ice's avidity  the  glories  of  South  Kensington,  West- 
minister, St.  Paul,  and  the  Zoo.  Oh,  how  childish! 
some  will  say.  Well,  I  can  only  reply :  "  Except  ye 
receive  the  kingdom  of  God  as  a  little  child,  ye  can  in 
no  wise  enter  therein."  And  it  is  the  merest  platitude 
to  say  that  the  majority  of  civilized  mankind  deliber- 
ately shed  their  capacity  for  pure  enjoyment,  con- 
demning things  as  childish  which  belong  to  the  highest 
development  of  manhood  or  womanhood,  and  batten 
upon  paltry,  debasing  pleasures  that  the  child  would 
instinctively  refuse,  knowing  by  divine  intuition  that 
there  can  be  no  satisfaction  therein. 

Therefore  these  five  came  down  to  Wren  Lane  Hall 
ready  not  only  to  pray  but  to  praise.  Their  eyes  had 
seen  many  wonders  of  nature  and  art,  and  their  souls 
had  prompted  them  to  thank  God,  which  is  as  it  should 
be,  but,  alas !  seldom  is.  When  they  arrived  they  found 
that  their  fame  had  preceded  them  (owing  to  the  inde- 
fatigable way  in  which  Jemmy  had  made  known  their 
history),  and  there  was  a  record  attendance  for  a  Sat- 
urday evening  prayer-meeting.  There  was  also  a 
swing,  a  go,  in  the  proceedings  that  no  one  present 
could  remember  as  having  been  attained  before.  Now, 
during  the  singing  of  one  of  the  hymns  Saul,  who  sat 
with  Jemmy,  facing  the  audience,  suddenly  caught  the 
eyes  of  a  young  lady  in  the  congregation  fixed  upon 
him  with  so  earnest,  so  all-embracing  a  gaze,  if  I  may 

261 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

use  the  word,  that  he  was  dumfounded.  His  voice 
faltered,  and  he  ceased  to  sing.  That  wistful,  beseech- 
ing look  awoke  in  him  something  that  until  then  had 
been  in  the  chrysalis  stage.  For  Saul,  like  many  an- 
other grand  man,  was  exceedingly  modest  about  him- 
self, and  the  idea  of  any  woman  loving  him  never 
occurred  to  him.  Moreover,  in  spite  of  his  sad  experi- 
ences all  round  the  world,  he  retained  a  most  whole- 
hearted reverence  and  admiration  for  woman  as  a  type 
of  the  higher  aspects  of  humanity.  To  him  woman 
per  se  was  a  lesser  angel,  in  whose  presence  any  decent 
man  must  be  in  something  of  the  same  mental  attitude 
as  he  remembers  he  preserved  at  his  mother's  knee  in 
early  childhood.  The  poor  debased  ones  he  had  met 
he  always  regarded  as  the  exceptions  which  prove  the 
rule — they  rather  deepened  and  confirmed  than  shook 
his  opinion. 

But  now  he  could  hardly  help  feeling,  such  was  the 
magnetic  power  of  Elizabeth  Carter's  eyes,  that  there 
might  be  a  possibility  of  his  being  loved  by  some 
sweet  girl,  who  would  by-and-bye  consent  to  become 
his  wife.  And  he  there  and  then  determined  to  do 
what  in  him  lay  to  find  out  whether  or  not  the  owner 
of  those  eyes  really  meant  what  he  felt  she  did  when 
she  looked  at  him  like  that.  So  at  the  moment  the 
meeting  closed  he  whispered  to  Jemmy  a  question  as 
to  whether  he  knew  that  young  lady,  pointing  a  quiver- 
ing finger  at  her  back  as  she  passed  down  the  Hall 
towards  the  exit.  No,  Jemmy  did  not  know  her,  but  he 
would  try  and  find  out.  And  with  that  scant  comfort, 
Saul  was  compelled  to  be  content,  and  hope  that  some 
fortunate  accident  would  bring  him  and  the  young 
woman  together.  He  was  so  wrapped  in  thought  as 
he  and  his  four  companions  strolled  homeward  to  their 

262 


A   Brighter  Day   Dawns 

comfortable  lodgings  through  the  crowded  streets  that 
the  latter  could  not  help  remarking  upon  his  preoccu- 
pied air.  So  he  shook  it  off  and  was  soon  his  own 
cheerful  self  again.  He  was  very  glad,  though,  to  be 
alone  in  his  little  room,  and  there,  in  silent  meditation 
with  his  Friend,  bring  this  new  and  startling  upheaval 
in  the  placid  flow  of  his  Christian  life  to  the  testing 
touch.  Do  what  he  would  he  could  find  no  condemna- 
tion for  the  trend  of  his  thoughts,  and  at  last  he  sank 
on  his  knees  and  fervently  asked  God  to  guide  him. 
And  if,  he  said,  it  was  not  contrary  to  God's  will  con- 
cerning him,  he  would  well  love  to  be  married,  to  look 
forward  at  his  home-coming  for  a  dear  human  face 
whose  eyes  would  beam  for  him  alone.  Who  would 
wait  for  him,  pray  for  him,  and — yes,  there  was  an  ex- 
quisite thrill  in  the  thought — would  perhaps  give  him 
a  living  pledge  of  love  that  should  bind  him  closer 
than  ever  to  the  Lord  and  Giver  of  Life,  and  enable 
him  better  to  understand  the  heart  of  the  Father. 

Sunday  dawned  bright  and  clear.  One  of  those 
lovely  days  in  this  much-maligned  London  winter  of 
ours  that  make  us  wonder  how  far  people  are  justified 
in  saying  the  things  they  do  about  it.  Not  a  breath  of 
air  stirring,  a  few  fleecy  clouds  sauntering  across  the 
pale  blue  sky,  and  a  tender  touch  in  the  air  that  while 
not  too  mild  for  the  time  of  year,  had  yet  within  it  a 
suggestion  of  summer.  At  the  breaking  of  bread  the 
sailors'  presence  gave  an  added  interest  to  the  weekly 
ceremony  that  brought  quite  a  new  flutter  of  joy  to 
the  hearts  of  the  faithful  ones.  What  it  meant  to  the 
visitors  no  one  could  say.  They  would  have  character- 
ized it,  had  they  been  able  to  put  their  thoughts  into 
words,  as  Jacob  did  the  holy  place  of  Luz :  "  This  is 
none  other  but  the  house  of  God,  and  this  is  the  gate 

18  263 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

of  heaven."  As  if  unable  to  keep  away  from  the  place, 
they  came  again  to  the  Sunday-school,  endearing  them- 
selves so  much  to  the  children  that  school  did  not 
break  up  till  an  unusually  late  hour,  and  then  when 
the  scholars  had  gone  they,  the  sailors,  sat  on  with 
Jemmy  and  Brother  Salmon  discussing  the  finances 
and  building  of  the  Hall.  When  they  heard  of  the  ebb- 
tide in  its  prosperity  which  set  in  with  Paterson's  rob- 
bery, they  were  touched  to  the  heart,  and  at  once  made 
up  the  amount  needed  to  put  the  mission  on  a  solvent 
footing.  Then  they  went  joyously  home  to  their  tea, 
firmly  refusing  to  burden  Jemmy's  humble  abode  with 
their  presence,  with  a  forethought  for  his  comfort 
and  a  delicacyxthat  would  have  done  credit  to  the  best- 
reared  gentlemen  in  the  land. 

The  lovely  day  drew  peacefully  to  its  close,  the 
evening  being  calm,  bright,  and  mild,  with  a  glorious 
full  moon.  And  with  thankful  hearts  the  mission  folks 
gathered  together  and  marched  to  their  old  station  on 
the  "  Waste,"  to  enjoy  a  meeting  in  the  open  air 
snatched  out  of  the  closed  season  of  winter.  The  won- 
derful weather  had,  as  it  always  does,  drawn  many  peo- 
ple out  for  a  little  fresh  air  and  exercise,  so  that  by  the 
time  the  meeting  was  fairly  under  way  a  goodly  audi- 
ence had  gathered.  Jemmy  was  in  splendid  form,  all  his 
late  despondency  having  vanished,  and  his  heart  beating 
high  with  hope.  When  he  told  the  people  of  the  home- 
coming of  Saul  and  his  children  in  the  faith,  and  in  his 
blundering  yet  graphic  way  had  described  the  joys  of 
their  voyage  with  the  Lord  in  command  of  their  ship, 
there  were  many  bystanders  who  wondered  whether  he 
was  not  inventing  a  good  story  for  their  benefit.  But 
when  Saul,  whose  face  was  familiar  to  many  in  the 
neighbourhood  from  his  former  ministrations  in  that 

264 


A  Brighter  Day  Dawns 

place,  stepped  forward,  the  interest  was  intense. 
Every  word  he  spoke  was  listened  to  as  if  it  was  an 
oracle.  He  said  very  little  about  himself,  and  that  little 
deprecatingly. 

That  omission,  however,  was  more  than  remedied 
when  his  brother  seamen  responded  to  the  call  made 
upon  them.  One  by  one  they  gave  their  simple  testi- 
mony ;  but  none  of  them  failed  to  tell  their  hearers  that 
had  it  not  been  for  the  brave  and  noble  stand  made 
by  Saul  among  them  they  would  never  have  known 
how  good  and  gracious  a  thing  it  was  to  serve  the 
Lord.  By  some  magnetic  power  people  were  con- 
tinually being  drawn  from  unseen  sources,  until  a  larger 
crowd  than  had  ever  before  been  seen  upon  the  "  Waste" 
was  gathered  round  the  speakers.  At  the  culminating 
point  of  the  meeting  there  was  a  little  bustle,  a  whis- 
pered consultation,  and  forth  stepped  Jemmy  Paterson, 
evidently  under  strong  tension  of  excitement,  a  con- 
dition which  at  once  communicated  itself  to  his  audi- 
ence. Without  any  preliminary  he  burst  out  with : 
"  Looky  'ere,  people,  most  on  yer  knows  me,  but  there 
ain't  many  on  ye  knows  any  good  of  me.  I  ben  a 
fair  'ot  'un,  I  'ave,  but  I  never  done  anyfink  quite  so 
bad  as  I  did  w'en  I  broke  into  these  'ere  blokes'  drum 
dahn  Wren  Lane  an'  pinched  all  the  oof  they  collected 
t'  pay  the  landlord  wiv.  I  robbed  a  good  many  people 
that  night,  I  know,  but  these  poor  chaps  'ad  t'  put  up 
wiv  the  consequences.  An'  wot  did  they  do  when  I 
come  agen  an'  broke  meself  all  up  tryin'  t'  do  annuvver 
grab.  W'y,  they  looked  arter  me  w'ile  I  was  in  the 
infirmary,  they  made  it  as  light  as  they  could  for  me 
'fore  the  madgstrate,  an'  w'en  I  come  aht  they  met  me 
at  the  gate  o'  th'  jug  an'  welcomed  me  's  if  I'd  a-ben 
their  long-lorst  bruvver.  They  set  me  up  in  bisness 

265 


The   Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

agen,  an'  I'll  tell  you  wot  it  is,  my  bisness  pays  me  nah. 
I  fine  'at  'cause  I've  learnt  t'  speak  the  trufe,  to  give 
good  weight,  an'  be  perlite  an'  puncshal  I'm  gittin'  more 
an'  more  work  every  day.  These  people  put  me  on  to 
that  as  a  sorter  reward  for  'aving  robbed  'em  an'  made 
'em  dreadful  dahn  in  the  mouth  fur  a  time. 

"  Then  w'en  they  see  I  was  sorry  fur  wot  I  done 
(I  was,  too)  the  arsked  me  ter  come  in  wiv  'em  an' 
serve  Gord  same  as  they  did.  I  ses  no,  I  ses :  '  I  don't 
feel  'sif  I  c'd  stick  it,  an'  I  ain't  a-goin'  ter  make  a 
mock  of  you  ner  Gord  neiver,'f  I  k'n  'elp  it.'  But  on  the 
q.  t.  I  fort  I  would  'ave  a  try  wivout  syin'  anyfink  t' 
anybody,  so  I  screws  up  me  eyes  tight  an'  I  ses :  '  Ho 
Gord,  I  don't  know  where  y'are,  I  carn't  see  yer,  an' 
'et  feel  ye,  but  I  can  see  wot  them  people  's  like  wot 
ses  'at  you  makes  'em  wot  they  is.  Nah,  I'm  on'y  a 
pore  ignant  coster,  a  bit  of  a  gun,  an'  in  general  no 
good.  Try  yer  'an'  on  me.  I'm  willin',  s'  'elp  me 
Gord,  I'm  willin'.  I'll  put  up  wiv  anyfink,  go  any- 
wheres, do  anyfink,  if  on'y  you'll  make  me  as  good  as 
that  lot  wot's  treated  me  as  they  'ave.'  An'  then  I  went 
on  wiv  me  job.  When  I  was  firsty  I  'ad  a  drink  er 
water ;  w'en  I  was  a-buyin'  I  didn't  tell  the  lies  I  useter, 
er  give  a  bloke  a  pint  t'  rob  his  guv'nor  for  my  benefit ; 
'n'  w'en  I  wos  a-sellin'  I  didn't  tell  everybody  I  was 
a-sellin'  my  goods  fur  less  'n  wot  I  giv  fur  'em.  At 
least,  I  say  I  did  or  didn't,  do  all  these  'ere  rings.  I 
don't  want  t'  tell  no  lies,  an'  yit  I  carn't  rightly  'splain 
to  yer  wot  I  mean.  I  don't  feel  's  if  I  did  'em  't  all.  I 
feel  'sif  somefink  inside  of  me  was  a-doin'  'em,  w'ile 
I  only  'ad  t'  be  quite  still.  Well,  I  fought  I'd  go  on 
like  that  quite  quiet  like  an'  not  a-syin'  anyfink  fur 
fear  I  should  break  aht  agen,  until  t'-night  I  come 
dahn  'ere  wiv  a  bit  er  brass  t'  pay  back  somer  wot  I 

266 


A  Brighter  Day  Dawns 

stole,  w'en  I  'card  that  there  bloke  torkin'  abaht  wot  'e 
calls  bearin'  witness  fur  Gord.  An'  ses  I  t'  meself,  ses 
I,  you  ain't  a-doin'  that.  Yore  'edgin',  that's  wot  yore 
a-doin'.  Yore  a-leavin'  a  back  door  t'  slip  out  on  case 
you  shou'd  feel  like  'avin'  a  fling  bimeby.  W'y,  you 
ain't  arf  a  man,  I  ses,  just  like  that,  'sif  I  was  a-torkin' 
t'  somebody  else.  Nah  be  a  man,  ses  I,  wotever  you 
do;  toe  the  mark  an'  tell  the  people,  so's  if  ever  you 
do  go  wrong  arter  this  they'll  be  able  to  spot  yer  fer 
the  dirty  dorg  y'  are.  Thet's  w'y  I'm  a-stannin'  up  'ere. 
I  carn't  tork  t'  yer  like  this  fine  bloke  "  (patting  Saul 
on  the  shoulder),  "  but  I  can  say  this,  that  all  rahnd 
abaht  every  one  'at  wants  to  do  right,  be  right,  live 
right,  there's  'elpin'  'ands ;  aht  o'  sight,  but  real.  An' 
I  b'lieve  they're  the  'ands  of  Almighty  Gord." 

There  was  an  awe-stricken  silence  as  Paterson  re- 
tired. Such  a  frank  outpouring  of  a  man's  inmost 
soul-strugglings  must  have  an  immediate  effect  upon 
such  a  promiscuous  crowd  as  were  gathered  on  the 
"  Waste  "  that  night.  It  is  only  in  congregations  case- 
hardened  by  the  constant  receipt  of  undeserved  bless- 
ings that  the  most  fervent  outpourings  of  a  man's  in- 
most soul  are  often  received  unmoved.  So  that  when 
Bill  Harrop  took  Paterson's  place  there  were  many 
weary  ones  panting  with  desire  to  obtain  a  share  of 
the  blessings  which  the  latter  had  indicated  as  having 
become  his.  Bill  began  to  speak,  and  as  he  did  so  one 
of  his  hearers  whispered  to  his  neighbour :  "  It's  a  fair 
knock  aht,  ain't  it?  W'y,  I  remember  w'en  'ee  was 
a  scorcher  an'  no  mistake.  You'd  on'y  gotter  look  at 
'im  ter  give  'im  a  wide  berf.  An'  nah  'e  looks  quite 
the  gentlemin."  All  unconscious  of  these  remarks,  Bill 
was  fervently  inviting  all  and  sundry  to  come  and  make 
the  acquaintance  of  his  newly  found  Friend.  "  If  yer 

267 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

don't  believe  wot  I  say,"  he  cried,  "  I'll  tell  yer  wot  to 
do.  You  go  an'  arsk  my  wife  'n  kids.  They  know  the 
difference  'tween  wot  I  was  an'  wot  I  am.  An'  I  be- 
lieve they  knows,  too,  the  trufe  o'  wot  Bruvver  Pater- 
son's  just  been  a-tellin'  yer — that  I  didn't  do  it,  ner 
yet  these  dear  people  'ere ;  it  was  th'  'and  of  Gord  wot 
did  it,  wot  made  me  clean,  'onest,  an'  sober.  Let  him 
'ave  a  try  at  yerselves,  those  of  yer  'oo  knows  at  yer 
needs  it.  Gord  bless  yer." 

Again  there  was  a  great  scene.  Unfortunately  it  was 
impossible  to  avoid  the  awkward  effects  of  physical  ex- 
citement altogether,  and  no  doubt  there  were  some 
who  professed  to  find  eternal  life  who  were  only  tem- 
porarily carried  away  by  the  prevailing  impression. 
That,  however,  was  not  for  the  preachers  to  desire. 
Theirs  only  to  do  as  they  were  bidden  and  afterward 
to  look  for  the  fruits  of  their  labours.  "  Bless  Gord," 
cried  Jemmy,  "  we  got  a  'All  t'  arsk  yer  inter.  Come 
along  all  on  yer  inter  th'  'All.  Le'ss  'ave  a  praise  meet- 
ing. Le'ss  give  Gord  fanks  for  all  'e's  done  fur  us. 
Praise  'is  'Oly  Name !  " 

So  they  went  in  a  body,  and  foremost  among  them 
went  Miss  Carter.  Seeing  that  Saul  was  somewhat 
overloaded  with  books,  chairs,  etc.,  she  said,  "  Let  me 
take  some  of  those  books  for  you,"  and  that  broke  the 
ice.  All  the  way  to  the  Hall  they  chatted  about  the 
work  that  was  being  done,  and  before  they  parted 
they  had  made  arrangements  to  see  more  of  each 
other. 

This  little  episode  must  not,  however,  make  me  for- 
get another  matter  that  showed  how  deeply  the  words 
spoken  on  the  "  Waste  "  had  struck  home.  After  as 
many  as  could  find  admission  had  crowded  the  Hall,  and 
the  impromptu  service  of  praise  was  in  full  swing, 

268 


A  Brighter  Day  Dawns 

Brother  Salmon  sidled  up  to  Jemmy  and  whispered: 
"  There's  a  gal  here  that's  in  trouble.  We  must  'elp  'er. 
My  wife's  just  told  me.  She's  under  notice  to  leave  her 
place  of  service  because  there's  a  baby  comin' ;  she's 
got  nowhere  to  go,  an'  her  friends  are  all  up  in  the 
North.  Now,  don't  you  think  we  must  do  some- 
thing?" 

"  Corse  I  do,"  answered  Jemmy.  "  Tell  'er  to  stop 
be'ind  an'  give  us  the  perticlers.  We'll  find  'er  a  place 
to  lie  'er  pore  'ead  dahn.  Pore  crechur,  she'll  be  pun- 
ished enough  for  wot  she's  done.  Pore  fing,  pore 
fing !  "  So  at  the  close  of  the  meeting,  when  many  re- 
joicing souls  had  gone  their  several  ways,  and  many 
others,  envious  of  the  happiness  they  saw  manifested, 
but  unable  to  grasp  its  secret,  had  gone  discontentedly 
homeward,  there  was  a  little  committee  meeting  held 
of  the  brethren,  with  the  poor,  shrinking  girl  sitting 
in  their  midst  like  one  awaiting  sentence. 

In  answer  to  questions,  as  delicately  put  as  if  their 
propounders  had  belonged  to  the  highest  rank  in  so- 
ciety, she  gave  all  the  information  required,  and  being 
promised  all  the  aid  the  brethren  could  give,  such  as 
providing  her  with  a  retreat,  fetching  her  box  away, 
etc.,  she  departed  lighter  in  heart  than  she  had  been  for 
many  a  day.  Then  her  new-found  friends  went  their 
several  ways  homeward,  rejoicing  all  in  the  blessed 
consciousness  of  a  good  day's  work  done  for  God.  In 
fact,  it  would  have  been  hard  to  find  anywhere  upon 
earth  so  happy  a  lot  of  people  as  had  emerged  from 
the  Wren  Lane  Mission  Hall  that  night.  Obscure, 
unknown,  unclassified  among  religious  agencies,  it  had 
yet  done  more  to  justify  its  existence  in  that  one  day's 
work  among  the  class  that  the  Lord  of  Light  came 
down  to  minister  unto  than  many  a  stately  cathedral 

269 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

had  done  in  all  the  centuries  of  its  existence.    Its  value 
was  to  them  as  life  is  to  stone. 

I  must  not  close  this  chapter  without  one  word 
about  Saul.  He  had  arranged  to  meet  Miss  Carter  on 
the  next  evening  and  take  her  for  a  walk.  In  his  own 
mind  he  had  planned  a  course  of  action  the  outcome  of 
which  you  shall  learn  in  due  time.  To  say  that  he  was 
happy  would  be  ineffectual.  He  was  always  happy. 
But  this  night  his  happiness  had  a  special  quality.  His 
life  seemed  suddenly  to  acquire  a  greater  significance, 
a  higher  value  than  ever  before.  In  short,  upon  his 
placid  pursuit  of  doing  good  to  all  from  love  to  God 
had  been  superposed  the  blessedness  of  doing  good 
to  one  for  love  of  herself.  Not  a  totally  different  thing, 
but  rather  an  essence  of  the  same. 


270 


CHAPTER  XXIV 
SAUL'S  WOOING  AND  WEDDING 

VERY  punctually  on  the  Monday  Saul  was  at  the 
appointed  trysting  place.  He  had  satisfactorily  dis- 
posed of  his  shipmates  for  the  evening,  not  without 
some  qualms  at  thus  leaving  them  to  themselves.  It  is 
a  failing  which  most  of  us  are  prone  to,  an  amiable 
weakness,  if  you  will,  but  nevertheless  somewhat  gall- 
ing at  times  to  the  objects  of  our  solicitude — I  mean  the 
way  in  which  we  will  persist  in  shepherding  people 
who  ought  to  be,  if  they  are  not,  quite  capable  of  tak- 
ing care  of  themselves.  Had  Saul  but  realized  it,  those 
poor  fellows  were  rather  relieved  to  be  their  own  mas- 
ters for  a  little  while.  They  loved  Saul  intensely,  but 
all  the  same,  the  sensation  of  being  continually  in  lead- 
ing-strings is  not  a  pleasant  one  for  grown  men ;  they 
love  to  feel  that  they  are  trusted.  So  that  Saul's  fears 
were  quite  groundless — it  was  a  little  overestimation 
of  his  own  importance,  not  any  needed  self-condemna- 
tion. 

When  he  saw  Miss  Carter  tripping  along  towards 
where  he  stood  expectant,  he  noted  with  an  accelerated 
heart-beat  her  fair,  fresh  face,  her  dainty  dress,  and 
graceful  movements,  and  he  felt  an  intense  delight  that 
he  was  being  thus  favoured.  Shyly  he  offered  her  his 
arm,  and  felt  her  little  hand  fall  upon  his  coat-sleeve 
with  a  sense  of  proprietorship  utterly  unjustifiable,  of 

271 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

course,  after  so  short  an  acquaintance,  but  still  most 
natural  under  the  circumstances.  A  few  platitudes  of 
the  usual  kind  followed — those  conversational  vedettes 
that  we  all  feel  bound  to  throw  out  before  the  main 
body  of  our  thoughts  as  we  skirmish  for  an  opening 
through  which  we  may  march  the  horse,  foot,  and  artil- 
lery of  our  pet  ideas. 

And  now  I  feel  a  considerable  difficulty  confront- 
ing me.  If  I  were  to  faithfully  set  down  Saul's  con- 
versation here  most  of  my  readers  would  call  him  a 
prig.  But  no  man  was  ever  less  of  a  prig  than  Saul 
Andrews,  and  I  dread  to  give  a  wrong  impression  of 
him.  May  I,  however,  remind  my  readers  of  one  es- 
sential fact — that  the  very  core  of  Saul's  existence,  the 
pivot  upon  which  all  his  thoughts,  feelings,  wishes,  and 
wants  revolved,  was  Christ?  I  speak  with  (I  hope)  a 
due  and  solemn  sense  of  the  weight  of  my  words,  and  I 
repeat  that  Saul  Andrews,  like  every  other  man  who 
has  been  touched  by  the  hand  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  could 
no  more  keep  the  name  of  his  Master  out  of  his  mind 
in  business,  or  out  of  his  mouth  in  friendly  talk,  than 
he  could  help  breathing.  Therefore,  before  he  and 
Miss  Carter  had  gone  a  mile  he  was  telling  her  of  his 
early,  pitiful  struggle  for  life;  of  that  unseen  Father 
who,  he  was  sure,  had  watched  over  him  through  all 
those  trying  days ;  of  his  godless  youth,  and  his  hair- 
breadth escapes  from  death  in  many  grim  forms ;  of 
his  conviction  and  conversion,  and  his  new-born  long- 
ing to  live  for  the  Lord  who  had  bought  him,  and  was 
always  training  him  up  to  do  what  he  needed  to  be 
done  in  the  particular  sphere  of  influence  controlled  by 
the  speaker. 

It  was  an  interesting  but  to  the  great  majority  of 
people  an  utterly  incomprehensible  sort  of  conversa- 

272 


Saul's  Wooing  and  Wedding 

tion  to  take  place  between  a  man  and  woman  who, 
if  not  yet  avowed  lovers,  were  both  on  the  brink  of 
declaring  themselves  so.  Miss  Carter  was,  in  some 
sort,  overcome  by  this  outburst  on  the  part  of  Saul. 
She  did  not  understand  it.  She  had,  it  is  true,  that  ten- 
der yearning  towards  religious  manifestations  which 
seems  to  be  the  special  characteristic  of  women  of  all 
ages  and  all  nations.  But,  like  the  majority  of  women 
also,  she  had  not  reasoned  about  these  matters.  She 
had  been  impressed  more  or  less  superficially  and  emo- 
tionally by  what  she  had  heard  on  the  "  Waste  "  and  in 
the  Hall,  and  all  she  needed  was  an  abiding  influ- 
ence, a  divine  control  over  her  thoughts,  feelings,  emo- 
tions— what  you  will — to  make  her  a  great  power  for 
good  into  whatever  society  she  might  be  cast.  At  this 
present  time  she  felt  that  such  a  power  was  needed 
by  her,  but  made  the  perfectly  natural  mistake  of  sup- 
posing that  Saul  could  supply  it.  Only  another  proof, 
by  the  way,  of  how  frail  human  nature  clings  to  the 
seen  and  tangible,  as  compared  with  its  difficulty  of 
appreciating  the  unseen  and  spiritual.  But  what  could 
Saul  know  of  this?  Manlike,  he  only  saw  a  dainty, 
pretty  young  woman  hanging  upon  his  \vords  ;  he  only 
felt  that  here  was  an  extension  of  his  work  for  God 
into  a  pleasant  region,  his  access  to  which  had  hardly 
been  dreamed  of  before,  and  the  discovery  wafted  him 
into  a  very  sea  of  delight. 

So  he  talked  on  and  on,  looking  down  fondly  into 
those  humid  eyes  that  gazed  up  into  his  with  so  much 
apparent  appreciation  of  what  he  was  saying,  although, 
to  say  truth,  it  was  himself,  not  his  words,  that  was 
bringing  that  gaze  of  all-embracing  affection  into  them. 
By-and-bye  he  said :  "  Now,  Miss  Carter — but  may  I 
call  you  Lizzie  ?  "  She  did  not  answer  verbally,  but 

2/3 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

her  look  and  the  slight  pressure  of  her  hand  on  his 
arm  was  sufficient.  "  Now,  Lizzie,  I'm  going  to  say 
to  you,  for  you've  encouraged  me  to,  what  I  never 
said  to  any  woman  before.  I  love  you,  and  if  you  can 
love  me  well  enough  to  share  my  lot  with  me,  be  my 
wife.  You'll  make  me  very  happy,  for  at  present  I 
have  no  home,  and  all  my  energies,  all  my  earnings,  go 
to  the  Wren  Lane  Mission.  And  I  can't  help  feeling 
that  God  would  like  me  to  have  a  dear  little  wife  (like 
you)  and  a  home  of  my  own.  But  you  know  I'm  a 
sailor,  earning  my  living  away  from  home,  and  some- 
times not  seeing  England  for  over  a  year.  It's  a  poor 
lot  I'm  askin'  you  to  share,  but  I  promise  you  that 
I'll  do  my  best  to  find  work  ashore  as  soon  as  possible 
if  you'll  only  be  my  wife.  Will  you  ?  " 

Of  course  he  could  not  know  how  eagerly  she 
had  been  longing  for  him  to  ask  her  the  question  any 
more  than  he  could  imagine  how  completely  the  pres- 
ent occupied  her  mental  horizon,  and  so  he  was  over- 
joyed, almost  dizzy  with  delight  when  she  shyly  mur- 
mured, "  Yes,  dear."  They  were  in  a  quiet  street  at 
the  time,  with  no  passers-by,  and  with  a  sudden  move- 
ment their  lips  met  in  the  betrothal  kiss,  an  act,  to 
Saul's  mind,  at  any  rate,  as  solemn  and  binding  as  his 
baptism  had  been.  They  walked  on  for  a  while  in 
silence  till  Saul  suddenly  broke  it  by  saying :  "  Tell  me, 
Lizzie,  dear,  have  you  no  friends  or  parents  whom  I 
ought  to  see  ?  Surely  you  are  not,  like  me,  quite  alone 
in  the  world  except  for  my  Lord's  precious  company." 

"  Not  quite,  but  very  nearly,"  she  sighed.  "  I  have 
a  father  and  a  mother,  separated  from  each  other  as 
so  many  are  in  this  cruel  London,  and  I  do  not  know 
where  either  of  them  are  just  now.  I  haven't  seen 
mother  for  over  six  months.  I  live  with  an  old  cousin, 

274 


Saul's  Wooing  and  Wedding 

a  dear  old  soul,  who's  got  a  little  private  dressmaking 
business,  and  we've  been  fairly  happy  together  since 
the  awful  day  I  came  to  what  was  home  then,  from  a 
machinist's  place  I'd  got,  and  found  the  furniture  all 
cleared  out  and  father  and  mother  gone,  nobody  knew 
where.  She — my  cousin  Carrie — as  soon  as  I  went 
an'  told  her  what  had  happened,  invited  me  to  come 
to  her  and  share  what  she'd  got,  and  as  far  as  she  could 
she'd  be  a  mother  to  me  now  my  own  had  deserted 
me.  She  has  been  all  that.  I've  been  fairly  fortunate 
in  getting  work  when  she  hadn't  enough  to  keep  us 
both  goin',  and  I've  had  no  illnesses,  thank  God,  or 
I  don't  know  what  we  should  have  done."  Saul's  face 
grew  very  grave  as  he  drew  a  mental  picture  of  what 
friendless  girls  have  always  before  them  in  a  great  city 
when  they  can  find  no  work,  and  no  one  feels  that  it  is 
any  part  of  their  duty  to  look  after  them ;  and  he  drew 
the  little  hand,  resting  so  confidingly  upon  his  strong 
arm,  closer  and  more  firmly  to  his  side  as  he  made  a 
vow  to  do  what  in  him  lay  to  be  both  father  and  mother 
to  its  owner. 

How  very  sudden,  says  some  one,  for  such  high 
affection  to  develop !  It  may  be,  but  then  sailors  must 
be  sudden  in  these  matters,  the  time  at  their  disposal 
being  so  short.  Moreover,  there  are  many  hearts 
wherein  love  has  been  long  accumulating  like  waters 
behind  a  dam,  until  it  only  needs  a  touch  to  release 
them  and  spread  them  in  vast  volume  over  all  ob- 
stacles. But  Saul,  being  like  most  fine,  brave,  and 
gentle  men,  exceedingly  diffident  and  modest,  as  well 
as  thoughtful  for  others,  now  said  what  many  would 
consider  a  foolish  thing — one,  at  any  rate,  quite  uncalled 
for  on  his  part.  After  declaring  that  it  gave  him  the 
utmost  joy  to  find  that  Lizzie  could  love  him,  he 

275 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

begged  her  to  consult  her  own  happiness  before  his  in 
this  wise :  that  if  she  should  find  during  his  absence 
that  she  had  made  a  mistake  she  was  to  have  no  com- 
punction in  telling  him  so,  since,  whatever  pain  it  might 
and  would  cost  him  then,  would  be  infinitely  better  and 
easier  to  bear  than  the  finding  out  of  such  a  mistake 
after  marriage  would  be.  He  found  to  his  surprise  that 
such  a  view  of  possible  change  in  her  feelings  towards 
him  was  very  distasteful.  She  looked  upon  it  as  almost 
a  personal  slight,  and  with  feminine  ingenuity  sharply 
suggested  that  perhaps  he  wished  to  leave  a  loophole 
for  his  own  escape  from  an  engagement.  Mildly  he 
pointed  out  to  her  how  foreign  such  an  idea  was  to 
his  mind,  and  reminded  her  that  whereas  she  would 
always  be  seeing  fresh  faces,  and  might  easily  find  that 
her  rapidly  firing  affection  for  him  was  misplaced 
through  meeting  some  one  whom  she  loved  better,  he 
would  be  in  quite  a  secluded  position,  where,  if  he  were 
ever  so  fickle,  he  would  have  no  chance  of  fixing  his 
affections  upon  any  other  girl,  for  the  simple  reason 
that  he  would  meet  none. 

Somewhat  mollified,  but  still  smarting  from  what 
she  considered  an  unmerited  suggestion,  Lizzie  at  last 
consented  to  change  the  subject.  And  Saul,  suddenly 
conscience-stricken  at  the  way  in  which  he  had  walked 
her  on  and  on,  forgetting  how  different  her  strength 
must  be  to  his,  invited  her  to  have  a  meal  with  him  in 
a  quiet  restaurant  near  by,  for  they  were  now  at  Green- 
wich. The  food  was  very  welcome,  and  the  meal  to 
Saul  was  almost  a  sacred  one,  the  first  of  all  his  experi- 
ence. His  eyes,  looking  through  love's  glamour,  in- 
vested her  with  a  holy  light.  She  was  transfigured, 
becoming  a  being  far  uplifted  from  the  common  herd 
of  mortals.  And  he,  why  should  he  be  privileged  to 

276 


SauPs  Wooing  and   Wedding 

(delicious  thought)  kiss  her.  Oh,  meed  past  all  de- 
serving, how  humble  it  made  him  feel!  Well,  love  (of 
this  kind)  and  common-sense  are  seldom  allied,  and 
Saul  only  made  the  old,  old  mistake  of  erecting  an  im- 
possible ideal  instead  of  the  real  woman  before  him, 
with  all  the  ordinary  stock  of  imperfections  and  weak- 
nesses. Rather  hard  upon  the  woman  to  be  thus  trans- 
formed, because  it  so  often  happens  that  when  the 
magic  haze  melts  from  before  the  lover's  eyes,  and  he 
sees  his  sweetheart  as  she  really  is,  he  is  bitterly  disap- 
pointed to  find  how  far  she  is  removed  from  the  being 
his  fancy  has  created.  And  it  is  not  in  any  sense  her 
fault. 

When  that  happy  evening  drew  to  a  close,  and  the 
lovers  parted,  Saul  felt  as  if  life,  always  holding  a 
sense  of  want  before,  had  now  completed  its  full  circle. 
Upon  entering  their  snug  lodgings  his  shipmates 
greeted  him  noisily,  being  unfeignedly  glad  to  see  him. 
They  told  him  that  they  had  visited  the  Asteroid,  and 
had  been  informed  that  she  was  going  round  to  Cardiff 
in  a  month's  time  to  load  coals  for  Hong-Kong;  that 
the  mate  had  given  them  to  understand  that  it  was 
probable  no  one  of  her  old  crew,  except  the  carpenter 
and  the  sail-maker  (who  seemed  to  be  as  much  a  part  of 
her  as  her  stern-post),  would  be  likely  to  go  in  her 
again,  for  Captain  Vaughan  had  received  an  appoint- 
ment already  to  a  fine  large  steamer,  the  mate  and  sec- 
ond mate  had  both  been  transferred  to  other  ships,  and 
consequently  none  of  the  daydreams  they  had  all  in- 
dulged in  about  being  again  a  united  and  happy  ship's 
company  were  likely  to  be  realized.  For  a  moment,  but 
only  for  a  moment,  Saul  was  saddened  by  this  news  that 
he  was,  in  place  of  the  pleasant  voyage  he  had  looked 
forward  to,  booked  for  another  uphill  fight;  but  faith 

277 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

soon  resumed  her  reign,  and  remembering  his  latest 
joys  he  was  cheered  again. 

While  the  five  sat  smoking  and  yarning,  happily  as 
sailors  will  when  they  are  well  fed  and  housed,  and 
have  nothing  on  their  minds,  Jemmy  Maskery  was 
announced.  He  was  also  received  uproariously,  and 
made  specially  welcome.  He  said  he  had  only  run 
over  for  a  little  while  to  speak  to  Saul  and  could  not 
stay.  If  Saul  would  come  out  with  him  for  a  few  min- 
utes he'd  be  glad.  Truth  to  tell,  he  was  anxious  to 
escape  from  that  tobacco-laden  atmosphere,  for  in  days 
past  he  had  been  a  passionate  lover  of  the  weed,  and, 
having  given  it  up  because  he  thought  it  hindered  him 
in  his  Christian  work,  he  dreaded  the  temptation  which 
the  smell  brought  to  bear  upon  him.  Wherein  he 
showed  his  wisdom  in  one  direction  at  any  rate,  for  no 
wise  man  courts  temptation,  however  fortified  against 
it  he  may  feel  himself  to  be. 

When  he  had  got  Saul  to  himself  he  told  him  that 
arrangements  had  been  made  to  bring  the  poor  girl's 
(she  who  had  besought  their  help  on  the  Sunday  even- 
ing) box  away  from  the  place  where  she  was  in  service 
to  the  Hall.  Also  that  he  had  obtained  for  her  an 
order  of  admission  into  the  infirmary  for  her  confine- 
ment. She  had  refused  to  go  home,  fearing  very  natu- 
rally to  face  her  poor  parents  under  such  miserable 
conditions.  Would  Saul  help  him  to  carry  her  box 
down  to  the  Hall,  where  it  might  remain  in  safe  keep- 
ing until  she  could  come  and  claim  it  again?  Why, 
of  course ;  nothing  could  please  Saul  better  than  so 
practical  a  demonstration  of  his  willingness  to  do  all 
that  a  Christian  man  should  do.  And  would  Saul  lend 
him,  Jemmy,  a  shilling?  He  had  got  a  few  chimneys 
to  sweep  in  the  morning,  and  he  would  repay  promptly. 

278 


Saul's  Wooing  and  Wedding 

Saul  immediately  replied  that  he  was  mightily  ashamed 
of  himself.  In  the  joy  of  his  home-coming  he  had 
forgotten  that  while  he  had  been  happily  employed, 
and  his  wages  steadily  accumulating,  his  dear  chum 
Jemmy  had  been  fighting  the  ever-lurking  wolf  that 
sometimes  puts  his  head  right  jn  at  the  door.  With 
words  to  this  effect  Saul  pressed  a  sovereign  into  Jem- 
my's unresisting  hand  and  announced  his  determination 
of  coming  home  with  him  to  take  supper.  But  Jemmy 
demurred  somewhat  shyly,  at  last  blurting  out  shame- 
facedly that  Mrs.  Maskery  was  just  about  to  be  con- 
fined, and  in  consequence  the  limited  accommodation 
of  their  little  dwelling  was  strained  to  breaking-down 
point.  In  fact,  two  of  the  children  were  sleeping  at  a 
neighbour's. 

Saul  immediately  extended  his  full  stock  of  sym- 
pathy, and  besought  Jemmy  to  count  on  him  for  any 
need  that  might  arise,  assuring  him  that  he  could  never 
come  in  vain  while  there  was  a  shot  in  the  locker, 
which  Jemmy  knew  to  be  absolutely  true.  And  thus 
they  parted  for  the  night,  the  little  golden  coin,  which 
in  certain  circles  is  looked  upon  as  such  a  trifle  that  it 
is  shovelled  from  corner  to  corner  of  the  gaming  table 
in  heaps  with  the  utmost  nonchalance,  having  here 
come  like  a  ray  of  celestial  light  into  poor  Jemmy's 
troubled  breast.  It  meant  all  the  difference  between 
present  happiness  and  misery.  This  is  no  figure  of 
speech.  Only  those  who  are  struggling  to  live  decent 
lives  in  the  midst  of  harassing  poverty  know  what  the 
sudden  advent  of  a  sovereign  in  time  of  distress  means, 
or  how  much  it  stands  for,  how  far  it  may  be  made 
to  go. 

The  next  morning  nine  o'clock  beheld  Saul  and 
Jemmy  (whose  home  crisis  had  happily  ended  during 
J9  279 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

the  night  in  the  birth  of  a  little  daughter)  waiting  at 
the  side  entrance  to  one  of  those  hideous  suburban 
villas  with  which  utterly  unprincipled  builders  have 
defiled  the  beautiful  outskirts  of  London :  an  erection 
of  no  known  order  of  architecture,  whose  tawdry  out- 
side ornaments  of  unseasoned  wood  were  already  de- 
caying, and  down  whose  walls  great  cracks  were  al- 
ready visible  amid  the  dirty  green  patches  that  showed 
where  the  shoddy  walls  were  sodden  with  damp.  The 
door  was  opened  to  them  by  the  girl,  her  eyes  inflamed 
with  weeping,  for  her  mistress,  an  ex-barmaid  whose 
forenoons  were  spent  in  bed  and  her  afternoons  in  the 
pursuit  of  what  she  understood  as  pleasure,  had  been 
venting  upon  her  in  no  measured  terms  the  wrath  and 
scorn  she  felt  at  a  creature  "  like  'er,  a  low-lyved  drab 
like  'er,  bringin'  disgrace  upon  a  respectabel  'ouse." 
How  is  it,  I  wonder,  that  women  whose  past  has  been, 
to  use  a  hackneyed  expression,  somewhat  shady,  are 
usually  so  merciless  to  any  sister  woman  who  has  pres- 
ently been  found  sinning?  Perhaps  it  would  be  unprof- 
itable to  inquire,  but  that  such  is  the  fact  let  all  bear 
witness  who  know  anything  about  the  matter  at  all. 

Saul  and  Jemmy  lost  no  time  in  man-handling  the 
somewhat  heavy  box,  and  staggering  away  with  it  to 
the  road  where  a  truck  they  had  brought  with  them 
was  standing.  With  all  possible  expedition  they  made 
their  way  to  the  Hall,  and  brought  the  box  safely  in- 
side. The  girl  followed,  and  there  faced  these  two 
men :  the  one  long  married  and  conversant  with  all  the 
mysteries  and  difficulties  of  female  life;  the  other  just 
entering  into  that  blissful  condition  of  life  known  as 
courtship,  and,  as  has  before  been  noted,  deeply  im- 
bued with  the  idea  of  female  sanctity.  Jemmy  it  was 
who  ended  an  awkward  pause  by  falling  upon  his  knees 

280 


Saul's  Wooing  and  Wedding 

and  saying,  as  he  did  so,  "  Less  'ave  a  word  o'  prayer." 
Saul  immediately  bent  his  knees,  and  the  girl,  albeit 
somewhat  surprised,  followed  his  example.  Jemmy  at 
once  lifted  up  his  voice  in  supplication :  "  Ho  Gord, 
hour  Farver,  look  dahn  on  this  'ere  poor  gal.  She's 
done  wrong  an'  she  knows  it.  She  don't  make  no  ex- 
cuse for  'erself,  an'  we  ain't  got  no  room  t'  condemn 
her.  You  knows  all  about  'er,  bless  yore  'Oly  Name, 
an'  kin  understan'  as  we  never  can  wot  'er  temptashuns 
was  an'  w'y  she  fell.  Forgive  'er,  Lord,  an'  be  with  'er 
in  'er  time  of  trial.  Wen  she's  a-sufferin'  comfort  'er, 
an'  let  'er  know  'ow  tender  an'  lovin'  yer  can  be ;  more 
tenderer  an'  lovin'er  than  any  of  erse  knows  'ow  ter 
be.  An'  ho  Gord,  w'en  it's  all  hover  an'  she's  back  in 
the  world  agen,  do  be  wiv  'er  an'  make  'er  yore  child. 
Don't  let  'er  fall  agen,  but  make  'er  way  plain  before 
'er,  an'  give  'er  grace  to  walk  in  it  till  'er  live's  end, 
w'en  she  won't  want  ter  walk  no  more,  'corse  she'll  be 
able  ter  fly.  Gord  bless  'er  an'  us,  for  Christe's  sake. 
Amen." 

I  dare  not  reproduce  for  you  that  poor  girl's  prayer. 
She  never  remembered  praying  before.  But  in  that  in- 
visible Presence,  brought  so  real  and  near  to  her,  she 
could  not  restrain  herself.  She  prayed  really.  No 
precedent  shaped  the  form  of  her  words,  but  brok- 
enly, sincerely,  she  asked  for  pardon,  for  help,  and  a 
clean  record  if  she  should  once  again  take  her  place 
amid  the  busy  world.  But,  and  here  she  sounded  the 
very  depths  of  pathos  to  my  mind,  she  humbly  asked  if 
it  might  be  that  both  she  and  her  infant  might  together 
enter  into  rest.  For  them  she  felt  the  world  had  no 
place.  Weak  and  friendless,  where  would  they  be 
welcome ;  or  where  could  they  hope  to  find  such  pro- 
found peace  as  the  grave  for  their  bodies  and  the 

281 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

bosom  of  the  Father  for  their  souls.  And  if  any  feel 
that  such  a  desire  was  irreligious  or  cowardly  I  have 
nothing  so  say. 

Saul  remaining  silent,  they  all  rose  from  their 
knees,  and  departed.  The  two  men  accompanied  the 
girl  to  the  infirmary,  warmly  assuring  her  that  when 
she  came  out  she  would  find  them  just  as  willing  to 
assist  her,  for  Christ's  sake,  as  they  were  now.  Wish- 
ing her  all  good  they  bade  her  farewell  and  left  her. 
The  gates  closed  upon  her  and  they  saw  her  on  earth  no 
more. 

During  the  next  week  matters  prospered  mightily 
with  the  mission.  The  presence  of  the  sailors,  who 
never  missed  a  meeting,  the  attendance  of  Jemmy  Pat- 
erson,  and  the  ever-fresh  enthusiasm  of  Bill  Harrop, 
who  had  become  an  inseparable  chum  of  Paterson's, 
all  combined  to  keep  the  public  interest  up  to  fever 
heat.  Day  after  day  saw  fresh  converts  pouring  in,  for, 
on  the  initiative  of  Saul,  a  week's  mission  had  been  en- 
tered upon  with  services  every  night,  and  the  fame  of 
the  Wren  Lane  Mission  began  to  spread  abroad  among 
the  local  churches  and  chapels,  so  that  their  members 
were  fain  to  visit  the  converted  cow-shed  and  see  if 
these  things  were  really  so.  Consequently  Saul  found 
little  time  for  courting ;  but  such  opportunities  as  came 
in  his  way  he  utilized  so  well  that  when  he  had  been 
three  weeks  ashore  he  and  Miss  Carter  had  decided 
to  marry  at  once  at  a  registrar's  office  and  have  a  little 
religious  service  at  the  Hall  in  the  evening.  They 
had  no  one  to  consult  but  themselves.  Saul  had  en- 
gaged to  go  in  another  ship,  the  Ferozepore,  to  Cal- 
cutta as  bo'sun,  and  would  leave  in  a  fortnight's  time, 
so  that  their  decision  not  to  delay  their  union  any 
longer  was  an  utterly  blameless  one. 

282 


Saul's  Wooing  and  Wedding 

Saul's  four  shipmates  were  unhappily  not  able  to 
wait  and  go  with  him  again,  but  they  saw  him  married, 
and  in  the  evening  at  Wren  Lane  Hall  there  was  a  meet- 
ing that  no  one  who  was  present  can  ever  forget. 
Jemmy  was,  as  the  patriarch  bestowing  his  blessing  on 
the  newly  wedded  pair,  beyond  all  criticism.  His  trans- 
parent earnestness  was  so  beautiful  that  it  completely 
diverted  the  mind  from  any  sense  of  the  ridiculous,  a 
quality  which  was  never  very  far  from  anything  Jem- 
my engaged  in,  owing  to  certain  peculiarities  he  pos- 
sessed which  were  inseparable  from  him,  a  part  of  his 
personality. 

The  evening  ceremony  over,  Saul  and  his  bride  re- 
tired to  her  cousin's  humble  home,  where  such  pro- 
vision as  was  possible  had  been  made  for  the  couple ; 
very  plain  and  poor,  it  is  true,  but  not  at  all  uncom- 
fortable, and,  indeed,  when  compared  with  what  both 
of  them  had  been  compelled  to  endure  in  their  child- 
hood, it  was  not  very  far  removed  from  luxury.  Here 
we  may  leave  them  to  enjoy  this  springtide  of  life,  all 
the  more  precious  because  each  knew  that  it  was  bound 
to  be  so  exceedingly  brief,  and  that  it  would  so  soon  be 
succeeded  by  a  long,  long  period  of  lonely  waiting,  of 
hope  deferred,  if  not  worse — in  fact,  of  all  those  ills 
that  are  summed  up  in  the  word  "  separation  "  when 
applied  to  those  whom  we  love. 

Before  closing  this  chapter  I  must  return  for  a  brief 
space  to  Jemmy  and  his  household  affairs.  Some  kind 
female  neighbour  had,  as  misguided  persons  will  do 
occasionally,  visited  Mrs.  Maskery,  ostensibly  to  see 
how  she  was  progressing  towards  convalescence,  but 
really  to  retail  to  her  all  the  bitter  scandal  circulating 
in  the  neighbourhood.  And  with  a  malignancy  all  the 
more  mysterious  because  the  speaker  was  really  a 

283 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

kind-hearted  woman,  she  had  told  Mrs.  Maskery  some 
perverted  version  of  the  Tuesday  morning  incident, 
when  Saul  and  Jemmy  had  carried  down  the  poor  girl's 
box  to  the  Hall.  This,  not  merely  from  the  words,  but 
the  manner  in  which  those  words  were  said,  rankled  in 
poor  Mrs.  Maskery's  little  brain.  And  when  Jemmy 
returned  that  evening  from  his  work  at  the  Hall  he  was 
met  with  a  furious  torrent  of  reproaches,  culminating  in 
a  fit  of  convulsions,  and  a  general  hubbub  among  the 
immediate  neighbours,  all  of  whom,  in  spite  of  the 
cleanness  of  Jemmy's  record,  were  devilishly  eager  to 
believe  him  guilty  of  every  evil  under  the  sun.  Before 
the  next  morning  at  least  half  a  dozen  perfectly  au- 
thentic stories,  all  different,  were  current  concerning 
Jemmy's  iniquities,  all  greedily  swallowed  and  believed, 
where  the  truth  would  have  been  scornfully  rejected. 


284 


CHAPTER  XXV 

SAUL  DESCENDS  INTO  DARK  PLACES 

NOT  wishing  to  harrow  my  readers'  sympathetic 
souls  unnecessarily,  I  pass  over  the  pathetic  parting 
scene  between  Saul  and  his  wife.  He  had  left  her  in 
good  hands,  and  with  his  half-pay  of  £2  5.?.  per  month 
to  supplement  her  own  fairly  good  earnings,  he  was 
not  without  hope  that  she  would  be  comfortable  until 
his  return.  In  fact,  like  so  many  of  us,  he  uncon- 
sciously looked  upon  hope  as  a  solid  asset  almost  as 
realizable  as  a  banking  account  with  a  substantial  bal- 
ance to  credit.  It  is  sometimes  seen,  this  hopeful  frame, 
in  commerce,  when  company  directors  divide  their 
earnings  up  to  the  hilt,  and  make  no  allowance  for  de- 
preciation nor  put  anything  to  reserve.  When  the 
almost  inevitable  crash  comes  everybody  is  loud  in 
their  condemnation  of  such  want  of  prudence.  But 
among  many  Christians,  owing  to  a  very  prevalent 
but  entirely  mistaken  reading  of  the  Scripture — Matt, 
vi,  25-31 — such  want  of  forethought  is  looked  upon 
as  an  evidence  of  faith.  Yet,  carried  to  its  logical 
conclusion,  it  would  mean  that  the  perfectly  faithful 
man  might  sit  quietly  at  home  and  meditate,  trusting 
the  Lord  to  provide  himself  and  those  dependent  upon 
him  with  all  things  needful.  Of  course,  there  are  in- 
stances when  such  behaviour  is  commendable — nay,  in- 
dispensable— to  the  proper  doing  of  exceptional  Chris- 

285 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

tian  work,  but  they  are  very  rare.  The  rule  is,  that  the 
Christian  must  hot  only  be  harmless  as  a  dove,  but 
wise  as  a  serpent ;  that  unless  he  would  be  condemned 
as  worse  than  ah  infidel  he  must  provide  by  his  honest 
labour  for  those  near  and  dear  to  him,  not,  of  course, 
forgetting  his  duty  to  the  brethren.  And  that  above 
all  things  he  must  not  be  lazy, 

Perhaps  I'm  doing  an  unconscious  injustice  to  Saul 
by  making  his  sanguine  behaviour  a  text  whereon  to 
hang  most  of  the  preceding  paragraph.  And  yet  I 
know  how  much  sorrow,  what  awful  heart  pangs  would 
have  been  spared  him  had  he  listened  to  the  voice  of 
prudence.  There  never  was  a  more  unwise  thing  done 
on  earth  than  the  leaving  of  a  young  wife,  by  a  sailor, 
in  one  of  our  great  seaports,  practically  friendless,  and 
bound  to  supplement  her  scanty  half-pay  by  her  own 
earnings  or  go  very  short  indeed.  Where  she  has  a 
home,  a  good  mother,  brothers  and  sisters,  friends, 
matters  are  very  different.  But  when  you  come  to 
think  of  it,  the  position  of  a  young  married  woman 
whose  husband,  after  a  week,  say,  of  wedded  bliss,  has 
left  her  fof  a  year,  and  who  has  no  friends  who  can 
properly  lighten  the  loneliness  of  her  life,  is  perilous 
in  the  extreme.  Whatever  may  happen,  she  needs  all 
the  consideration  possible,  the  kindliest  construction 
that  can  be  placed  upon  any  of  her  acts. 

But  to  return  for  a  moment  to  the  affairs  of  the  mis- 
sion. Saul's  mafriage  having  deprived  them  of  his 
half-pay,  and  coming  as  it  did  Upon  the  top  of  their 
catastrophe,  could  only  be  called  a  severe  blow.  Yet 
such  was  the  love  they  bore  him  that  they  all  rejoiced 
in  his  happiness,  allowing  no  selfish  thought  of  their 
own  impending  troubles  to  creep  in.  And  there  was 
certainly  one  bright  spot  in  the  gloom  ahead.  It  was 

286 


Saul  Descends  into  Dark  Places 

that  the  latest  convert,  the  young  clerk,  had  taken  hold 
of  things  in  so  splendid  a  fashion  that  already  the  mem- 
bers had  begun  to  lean  upon  him  in  all  critical  situa- 
tions, to  depend  upon  his  calm,  clear  common  sense,  and 
above  all  to  feel  that  whatever  might  happen  to  the 
mission,  he  would  strain  his  resources  to  the  utmost 
before  it  should  come  to  grief.  But  Brother  Jackson 
and  his  band  had  set  up  a  Hall  for  themselves  in  a 
disused  packing-case  maker's  shop  only  a  few  rods 
away,  and  were  carrying  on  so  vigorous  a  campaign 
that  the  funds  at  Wren  Lane  were  seriously  affected. 
Rumour  had  it  that  already  strange  doctrines  were 
being  taught  at  the  new  conventicle ;  that  Jackson  had 
been  studying  a  batch  of  books  sent  him  from  America, 
that  land  of  strange  perversions  of  Protestantism.  It 
was  whispered  that  he  was  determined  to  make  a  new 
application  of  the  old  text — "  Prove  all  things,  hold  fast 
that  which  is  good  " — by  giving  every  new  form  of 
belief  (or  rather  every  old  form  of  heresy  in  a  nine- 
teenth-century garb)  which  came  along  a  fair  trial, 
until  some  day  he  hoped  he  should  find  one  that  would 
ultimately  satisfy. 

Meanwhile  the  novelty  was  attractive.  Curiosity 
led  many  strange  visitors  to  the  new  conventicle,  to 
hear  men  and  women  who  could  do  little  more  than 
read  plain  print,  and  could  hardly  write  their  own 
names,  discussing  among  themselves — yes,  and  ex- 
pounding from  the  platform — obscure  points  or  exe- 
gesis such  as  have  puzzled  the  most  learned,  not  to  say 
the  wisest,  men  of  all  ages.  They  quoted  Greek  and  He- 
brew, questioned  the  translation  of  passages  that  did 
not  happen  to  fit  their  theories  of  the  moment,  and 
carried  themselves,  these  ignorant  ones,  as  if  upon 
them  and  them  only  had  fallen  the  divine  gift  of  speak- 

287 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

ing  all  tongues,  knowing  all  mysteries,  and  (this  was 
the  most  dangerous  phase  of  all)  of  being  exempt  from 
such  mortal  frailties  as  sin  and  disease.  Many  worthy 
people  who  have  all  their  lives  dwelt  quietly  under  the 
shadow  of  one  particular  church,  humbly  grateful  for 
its  teaching,  and  never  presuming  to  question  one  of 
its  points  of  doctrine,  but  doing  that  which  their  hands 
found  to  do  with  all  their  might,  and,  best  of  all,  lead- 
ing quiet,  consistent  Christian  lives,  will  doubtless  look 
upon  my  description  of  these  seceders  as  caricature, 
and  even  that  vastly  exaggerated.  But  all  those  who 
have  lived  and  laboured  in  Christian  ways  among  the 
lower  religious  strata  of  our  country  will  know  that  it 
is  in  nowise  over-coloured.  So-called  religious  discus- 
sion is  usually  tabooed  among  non-religious  working 
people  on  account  of  its  usually  leading  to  blows ;  but 
among  professing  Christians  of  that  class  not  only  is 
religious  discussion  in  the  highest  vogue,  but  some  of 
the  wildest  theories  are,  where  possible,  reduced  to  prac- 
tice, and,  where  one  particular  heresy  is  the  fashion, 
woe  be  to  him  or  her  who  dares  to  question  its  absolute 
and  final  settlement  of  the  one  great  matter — the  salva- 
tion of  the  individual  soul.  Still,  such  people  are  usu- 
ally much  better  than  their  creeds. 

But  we  must  return  to  Saul.  After  a  fortnight  of 
such  happiness  as  he  had  hitherto  only  dimly  imagined 
to  be  possible  on  earth  came  the  day  of  his  departure 
for  a  voyage  estimated  to  last  at  least  nine  months. 
His  bride  was  inconsolable.  With  true  feminine  incon- 
sistency she  blamed  Saul  for  leaving  her,  bewailed  her 
folly  in  marrying  a  sailor,  scolded  herself  for  even  hint- 
ing at  such  a  thing,  and  dissolved  in  tenderest  con- 
sideration for  him  in  his  coming  loneliness  by  turns. 
She  could  not  see  him  off,  for  his  vessel  left  at  4  A.  M., 

288 


Saul  Descends  into  Dark  Places 

so  he  bade  her  farewell  at  their  bedside  on  his  knees, 
tenderly  commending  her  to  the  care  of  his  Father, 
and  humbly  asking  that  he  might  be  spared  to  find 
her  happy  and  hearty  on  his  return.  So  he  departed 
to  his  ship,  but  in  a  very  different  frame  of  mind  to  that 
with  which  he  joined  the  Asteroid  nearly  twelve 
months  before.  And  somehow  he  had  not  the  same 
spring,  the  same  single  outlook  upon  the  future,  the 
wide-eyed  confidence  that  he  had  enjoyed.  He  felt 
himself  more  ready  to  consider  consequences,  al- 
though he  knew  that  what  he  was  doing  was  right. 

When  he  arrived  on  board  all  was  perfectly  quiet. 
A  decrepit  seaman,  given  the  job  as  a  pension,  was 
watchman.  He  informed  Saul  that  he  was  the  only 
man  on  board,  and  that  from  what  he  had  seen  he 
didn't  expect  that  she  would  leave  at  tide-time.  But 
he  admitted  that  he  did  not  know  the  "  old  man," 
upon  whom  so  much  depends  on  board  ship.  Saul, 
however,  knowing  from  experience  what  sort  of  a  day 
awaited  him  on  the  morrow,  took  one  preliminary  sur- 
vey of  his  new  home  as  he  smoked  his  good-night  pipe, 
with  the  firm  intention  of  getting  all  the  rest  practicable 
while  he  had  the  opportunity. 

She  was  what  the  modern  sailor  knows  as  a  "  four- 
poster  " — that  is,  a  four-masted  sailing-ship.  Really 
she  was  just  a  square-rigged  ship — that  is,  having  three 
masts  with  yards,  into  which  a  fourth  mast  had  been  in- 
serted because  of  her  great  length,  making  her  a  four- 
masted  bark,  the  fourth  mast  only  carrying  two  fore 
and  aft  sails  ;  no  yards.  She  had  been  badly  neglected ; 
Saul  could  see  that  even  at  night ;  and  badly  found  into 
the  bargain.  One  or  two  blocks  and  gipsies  that  he 
tried  would  hardly  move  without  any  suggestion  of 
leverage  being  obtained  by  them.  And  he  sighed  as 

289 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

he  thought  of  the  wild  work  there  would  be  in  Chan- 
nel if  they  should  encounter  a  sudden  gale  unless  they 
were  fortunate  in  having  a  most  extraordinary  crew. 
Then,  his  pipe  smoked  out,  he  sought  his  bunk  and 
turned  in,  catching  himself  sighing  heavily  at  intervals 
before  he  sank  to  sleep,  quite  a  novel  experience  with 
him,  who  had  been  so  evenly  happy  since  his  conver- 
sion. Had  he  been  a  philosopher,  I  suppose  he  would 
have  endeavoured  to  account  for  this  by  the  action  of 
some  compensating  law,  that  having  been  for  a  short 
time  exuberantly  happy  he  must  now,  to  restore  the 
needed  balance  of  the  human  soul,  be  for  a  time  unduly 
miserable.  But,  being  only  an  ordinary  human  being, 
very  tender-hearted  and  sensitive  to  internal  as  well 
as  external  impulses,  and  withal  actuated  by  the  in- 
dwelling force  of  righteousness,  he  pondered  none  of 
these  things.  He  just  blamed  himself  a  little  for  in- 
gratitude, and  then  took  the  matter  to  his  Father  in 
heaven,  commending  to  him  also  his  dear  wife,  who, 
he  shuddered  to  think,  was  to  be  so  lonely  in  that 
great  London  until  his  return.  He  was  comforted  and 
fell  asleep. 

"  Now,  then,  bo'sun ;  the  man,  is  he 

drunk  too,  I  wonder?  Here,  bo'sun,  turn  out  an'  see 
about  gettin'  th'  ship  outer  dock.  Y'  ought  ter  been 
on  deck  long  ago,  y'  know."  An  angry  voice  in  the 
darkness,  its  owner  invisible  behind  a  bull's-eye  lantern, 
a  sense  of  utter  bewilderment  as  to  why  he  was  thus 
assailed,  a  feeling  of  compunction  that  it  should  have 
been  found  necessary — all  these  sensations  flashed 
through  Saul's  mind  in  less  than  two  seconds.  Then, 
apologetically  murmuring,  he  sprang  out  of  his  bunk, 
and  the  mate,  for  it  was  he,  departed,  the  absence  of 
his  body  from  the  doorway  permitting  the  entry  of  a 

290 


Saul  Descends  into  Dark  Places 

whirl  of  snow.  One  thing  was  plain  to  Saul  as  he  hur- 
ried on  his  clothes :  the  old  watchman  had  omitted  to 
call  him,  for  never  before  had  he  lain  down  again  after 
having  been  once  aroused.  But  it  was  of  scant  use  to 
know  that,  for,  in  the  first  place,  the  watchman  had  de- 
parted ;  and,  in  the  next,  if  he  had  been  there,  he  would 
certainly  have  declared  that  he  had  done  his  duty. 

It  was  pitch  dark,  but  for  the  glimmering  snow- 
flakes,  when  Saul  came  on  deck.  The  sailor's  eyes, 
however,  rapidly  become  accustomed  to  the  dark,  and 
before  Saul  reached  the  forecastle  head,  where  he 
hoped  to  find  the  mate,  he  could  see  as  well  as  pos- 
sible. Climbing  to  the  upper  deck,  he  found  the  mate 
bawling  frantically  to  some  invisible  person  on  the 
quay,  whose  answering  yells  came  weirdly  up  through 
the  darkness.  As  soon  as  the  mate  turned,  Saul  con- 
fronted him,  saying :  "  Beg  yer  pardon,  Mr.  Jones,  but 
I  hope  you  won't  think  me  slack.  I  was  never  called. 
I'll  take  yer  orders  now,  sir." 

"  Never  called,  eh  ?  "  sneered  the  mate.  "  Seems 
to  me  I've  heard  that  yarn  before.  An'  as  t'  orders, 
d'ye  know  yer  work  er  don't  ye?  I  sh'd  think  any 

fool  'd  know  'at  the  first  thing  was  t'  git  yer  men 

together,  an'  the  sooner  y'  see  to  it  the  better.  Just 
move  lively  now,  or  else  you  and  me  won't  be  friends 
very  long." 

"  Ay,  ay,  sir,"  rose  automatically  to  Saul's  lips, 
but  his  heart  was  hot  within  him.  He  controlled  him- 
self, though,  and  descending  swiftly  to  the  main  deck, 
began  to  look  for  his  crew.  With  great  difficulty  he 
found  them  stowed  away  in  all  sorts  of  corners  in  the 
two  sides  of  the  forecastle.  But  his  heart  sank  as  one 
by  one  they  revealed  their  uselessness.  There  were 
negroes,  Italians,  Spaniards,  Greeks,  Scandinavians, 

291 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

and  three  Britons.  Of  them  all,  only  the  three  Britons 
were  of  any  use,  and  they  were  fairly  fresh  with  drink. 
But  they  were  three  splendid  fellows,  with  the  old  bull- 
dog contempt  for  "  dagoes  "  and  "  square-heads,"  and 
in  spite  of  their  potations  they  rose  to  the  occasion. 
Not  one  of  the  others  could  Saul  get  on  deck.  Some 
were  swinishly  drunk,  others  were  apparently  nearly 
dead  with  cold,  but  all  were  absolutely  helpless.  And 
at  last  Saul,  having  done  all  that  man  could  do,  called 
upon  his  three  stalwarts  to  follow  him,  and  made  his 
way  on  to  the  forecastle,  where  he  acquainted  the  mate 
with  the  state  of  affairs. 

That  officer  was  a  young  man  of  great  assurance 
and  scanty  ability,  possessed  of  a  fluent  command  of 
bad  language  and  little  else.  He  had  been  pampered 
hitherto  by  sailing  with  a  man  who,  being  under  great 
obligations  to  his  father,  who  had  been  part  owner  of 
the  ship,  had  made  things  very  easy  for  him  as  second 
mate.  This  was  his  first  voyage  as  mate.  He  was  in 
a  strange  ship,  and  he  had  a  notion  that  a  loud  voice 
and  a  bullying  manner  were  all  that  were  necessary  to 
get  along  as  mate  of  a  big  British  sailing-ship.  So  he 
turned  threateningly  to  Saul,  and  with  many  an  oath 
inquired  whether  he  (the  mate)  was  expected  to  do 
bo'sun's  work  as  well.  Then,  his  voice  rising  ever 
higher,  he  ordered  Saul  to  go  and  turn  the  hands  out 
and  act  like  a  man,  not  like  an  adjective  baby  in  long 
clothes.  Saul  waited  respectfully  until  he  had  finished, 
his  mind  busy  with  the  retrospect  of  the  Asteroid. 
Then  he  calmly  said :  "  I  did  my  best  with  them,  sir, 
before  I  troubled  you.  Perhaps  you  had  better  just 
come  and  look  at  'em.  They  may  be  all  right  by  the 
time  we  gets  to  Gravesen',  though  I  doubt  it.  Any'ow, 
all  there  is  to  do  between  here  and  there  I  dare  say; 

292 


Saul  Descends  into-  Dark  Places 

these  three,  the  carpenter  and  sail-maker,  apprentices, 
and  myself  can  manage." 

"  Oh,  git  out  o'  my  way !  "  stormed  the  mate  as  he 
rushed  down  the  fo'csle  ladder  and  aft  to  where  the 
skipper  stood  talking  with  the  river  pilot. 

Captain  Fortescue  was  the  very  antipodes  of  Cap- 
tain Vaughan  of  the  Asteroid.  His  idea  of  maintain- 
ing discipline  was  to  play  one  officer  off  against  the 
other,  the  crew  against  the  officers,  enjoying  as  much 
the  endless  cabals  that  took  place  and  the  general 
feeling  of  dissatisfaction  as  some  men  enjoy  a  game 
of  chess.  At  the  present  moment  he  was  in  a  very 
happy  frame  of  mind.  He  was  certainly  not  drunk, 
but  he  had  been  drinking  freely,  and  in  some  circles 
he  would  have  been  called  pot-valiant.  Having  heard 
the  mate's  report,  he  said  gaily :  "  Excuse  me,  pilot, 
I'll  have  t'  go  an'  see  what  I  k'n  do  to  git  my  crew 
out.  You  know,  same  old  thing;  takes  me  to  see  a 
job  like  this  through."  So  he  strode  jauntily  off,  fol- 
lowed by  the  mate,  who  told  him  as  they  went  that 
the  bo'sun  was  a  poor  thing,  hadn't  got  a  word  to 
throw  at  a  dog.  "  That  so  ?  "  answered  the  skipper. 
"  Well,  Mr.  Jones,  I  guess  I've  trained  a  few  bo'suns 
in  my  time.  I'll  have  a  look  at  him  directly."  They 
reached  the  fo'csle  and  found,  as  Saul  had  said,  that  the 
case  was  hopeless.  They  could  do  nothing  with  the 
men ;  more  like  logs  of  wood  than  human  beings,  who 
seemed  alike  insensible  to  blows  and  abuse,  and  who  if 
dragged  to  their  feet  collapsed  immediately  they  were 
let  go. 

So  the  attempt  was  relinquished,  a  tacit  admission 
that  Saul  was  right.  Yet  such  is  the  perversity  of 
human  nature,  that  both  the  mate  and  skipper  hated 
Saul  more  because  he  was  right  than  they  would  have 

293 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

done  had  they  found  him  to  be  wrong.  But  the  ship 
had  to  go,  crew  or  no  crew.  So  all  through  the  bit- 
terness of  that  morning,  Saul,  his  three  men,  the  ap- 
prentices, and  the  carpenter  (the  sail-maker  was 
speechlessly  drunk  in  his  berth)  laboured  to  get  things 
ship-shape  and  Bristol  fashion,  and  longed  for  Graves- 
end.  In  due  time  they  arrived  there  and  anchored, 
the  tug  sheering  off  and  anchoring  near  to  await  the 
pilot's  decision  as  to  when  the  Ferozepore  would  be 
ready  for  sea.  At  intervals  throughout  the  day  Saul, 
the  mate,  and  the  second  mate  visited  the  fo'csle, 
always  treating  the  three  workers  with  respect  (which 
they  had  well  earned),  but  it  was  not  until  daybreak 
the  next  morning  that  the  polyglot  crowd  were  avail- 
able for  work.  What  sort  of  a  fist  they  would  make  of 
the  vast  sails  overhead  no  one  knew ;  they  must  trust 
to  Providence.  Ah!  how  many  trust  in  Providence 
because  they  must,  not  knowing  what  they  trust  in, 
when  they  might  trust  in  God  of  their  own  free-wills 
and  know  in  whom  they  had  believed,  to  their  souls' 
inexpressible  comfort ! 

I  may  not  draw  the  picture  of  that  getting  under 
weigh.  Of  how  the  mate  and  Saul  were  just  policemen 
keeping  a  sharp  eye  upon  the  miserable  men  who 
were  continually  slipping  away  below.  Of  how  those 
two  sorely  worried  officers — of  whom  one  had  to  bear 
the  burden  of  undeserved  contumely  from  his  superior 
as  well  as  that  of  his  own  work  and  his  private  sorrows 
(but  the  capacity  of  the  human  brain  is  mercifully 
limited ;  it  cannot  do  too  much  thinking  at  one  time)  — 
had  to  bear  the  burden  of  the  whole  ship's  company 
and  do  their  own  work  as  well.  No,  let  me  just  in 
hasty  fashion  slur  over  the  miseries  of  that  bad  day, 
and  hasten  on  to  the  time  when,  the  tugboat  having 

294 


Saul  Descends  into  Dark  Places 

slipped  her  hold,  the  huge  Ferozepore  went  blunder- 
ing down  Channel,  zigzag  fashion,  the  wind  being  al- 
most dead  ahead.  Ye  Channel  passengers  who,  ha- 
stening to  France,  bewail  your  sufferings  on  that  brief 
passage  measured  by  minutes,  think  if  you  can  what 
it  must  mean  to  be  in  a  mighty  ship  without  steam- 
power,  and  with  a  handful  of  wastrels,  ill-fed  and 
badly  housed,  hopelessly  battering  against  a  south- 
westerly gale  down  Channel.  Think,  if  you  can,  what 
it  must  be  to  handle  such  a  ship  as  an  officer,  and  you 
won't  wonder  any  longer  that  if  there  should  be  a 
bottle  of  whisky  handy  a  man  in  such  a  plight  should 
resort  to  it. 

A  detailed  description  of  the  Ferozepore's  experi- 
ences that  night  as  she  tumbled  about  in  the  ugly  cross- 
channel  seas  would  comprise  a  resume  of  the  reason 
why  we  cannot  get  our  countrymen  to  choose  the  sea 
as  a  profession.  I  dare  not  commence  the  subject  here, 
having  dealt  with  it  so  frequently  in  other  places.  But 
I  must  point  out  that  Saul,  the  most  blameless,  the 
hardest-working  of  all  her  crew,  was  now,  by  the  irony 
of  fate,  in  almost  the  worst  position.  He  saw  the 
officers  freshening  the  nips;  he  saw  his  useless  crew 
slinking  away  into  hiding;  saw  how  cruelly  the  want 
of  men  to  do  the  work  bore  upon  the  tenderly  nur- 
tured apprentices  paying  to  learn  their  profession  and 
being  used  as  a  substitute  for  men  who  must  be  paid, 
and  he  was  very  sad.  But  he  kept  going.  Long  after 
he  was  justly  entitled  to  rest  he  might  have  been  found 
examining  running-gear  left  unrove  or  wrongly  rove 
by  careless  riggers  with  no  one  to  look  after  them. 
And  when  at  last  he  did  seek  his  berth  he  first  inter- 
viewed the  mate,  and  informed  him  of  the  state  of  the 
ship  as  far  as  he  had  been  able  to  discover  it.  The 
20  295 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

mate,  instead  of  recognising  that  he  had  a  conscien- 
tious man  in  charge  of  things,  just  grunted  some  un- 
intelligible reply  and  turned  his  back.  Saul  said, 
"  Good-night,  sir,"  and  sought  his  berth. 

Three  days,  three  weary,  month-long  days,  this 
lasted,  and  by  dint  of  persistent  hammering  the  Fer- 
ozepore  was  well  outside  the  Channel.  Saul  was  be- 
ginning to  breathe  more  freely,  and,  what  was  not  so 
good  for  him,  was  beginning  also  to  have  some  leisure 
to  think  upon  how  things  might  be  going  on  at  home. 
Without  saying  one  word  to  anticipate  my  story,  I  must 
remark  that  it  was  well  for  him  that  he  did  not  know 
how  widely  the  reality  of  what  was  taking  place  dif- 
fered from  his  mental  pictures  of  it.  Many  people 
grumble  very  much  because  they  cannot  peep  into 
futurity  or  know  what  is  going  on  out  of  their  sight, 
but  they  should  rather  thank  God  on  their  bended  knees 
that  these  things  are  denied  them.  However,  before 
Saul  sank  to  rest  each  night  he  lapped  himself  in  a 
golden  dream  of  home,  of  his  beautiful  bride  kneeling 
by  her  solitary  bed  commending  him  to  the  care  of  the 
Father.  He  pictured  to  himself  her  mind  being  occu- 
pied each  day  and  all  day  with  visions  of  himself  and 
prayers  for  his  welfare.  Poor  Saul ! 

On  the  fourth  night  out,  the  wind  having  freed 
and  freshened  at  the  same  time,  all  hands  were  de- 
tained at  eight  bells  midnight  to  trim  sail.  It  was 
pitchy  dark  and  the  air  was  filled  with  spindrift.  All 
hands,  with  the  exception  of  the  petty  officers,  slouched 
about  their  work,  muttering  curses  in  their  various 
tongues  upon  the  hardships  accompanying  the  life  of 
they  that  go  down  to  the  sea  in  the  ships,  when  the 
thickness  to  windward  suddenly  materialized.  It  as- 
sumed a  gigantic,  an  awful  shape.  Forth  blazed  two 

296 


Saul  Descends  into  Dark  Places 

terrible  eyes  of  red  and  green,  and  high  overhead 
pointed  threateningly  a  long  white  finger.  Then  came 
a  hideous,  grinding  crash,  a  piercing  wail  in  many 
tones,  and  the  Ferozepore  turned  on  her  side  and  sank, 
another  item  in  the  tribute  demanded  by  the  sea  from 
its  votaries. 

At  the  moment  of  impact  Saul  was  fast  asleep. 
Rudely  awakened,  he  leaped  on  deck,  and  seeing  no 
one,  imagined  that  all  had  sought  refuge  on  board  the 
mighty  hull  that  was  boring  its  way  steadily  through 
the  ribs  of  his  ship.  Just  pausing  a  moment  to  awaken 
thoroughly  his  berth-mates,  the  carpenter,  sail-maker, 
and  cook,  Saul  ran  up  the  main  rigging  and  leaped 
hazardously  upon  the  deck  of  the  steamship.  There 
was  no  one  there.  He  ran  aft  and  mounted  the  bridge ; 
still  no  one.  Then,  as  he  was  about  to  descend,  he  was 
confronted  by  the  captain,  who,  flung  out  of  his  berth 
by  the  concussion,  had  just  scrambled  on  deck  to  find 
his  chief  officers  missing  and  the  Chinese  crew  hidden 
away  no  one  knew  where.  Just  a  very  few  words  of 
explanation  passed.  Men  think  rapidly  and  speak  the 
same  under  such  circumstances.  Naturally  the  cap- 
tain of  the  Shan-hai-kwan  was  anxious  about  his  future, 
but,  as  he  said,  he  could  not  be  on  deck  all  the  time. 
And  his  chief  officer  was  a  first-class  man.  They  were 
both  Germans  and  the  steamer  belonged  to  Japan.  Poor 
Saul  had  nothing  to  say.  His  mind  was  full  of  the  ter- 
rible happenings  of  the  last  hour,  and  the  knowledge 
that  in  all  probability  every  soul  on  board  the  Feroze- 
pore had  been  drowned  but  himself.  But  his  medita- 
tions were  rapidly  cut  short.  The  Shan-hai-kwan  had 
not  only  stove  in  her  bows :  she  had  done  much  other 
serious  damage  to  her  hull,  and  she  was  sinking  fast. 
There  was  a  wild  upward  rush  of  coolies  from  below, 

297 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

a  hissing  of  escaping  steam,  guttural  German  oaths,  as 
pidgin-English  was  forgotten  by  the  officers,  a  few 
dropping  shots  from  revolvers,  one  last  wild  scramble, 
and  Saul  found  himself  alone  on  the  Atlantic  clutch- 
ing a  hen-coop,  the  waves  rising  and  falling  monoto- 
nously around. 


298 


CHAPTER  XXVI 

THE  NIGHT   FALLS 

How  long  Saul  had  floated  thus  he  did  not,  and 
never  will,  know.  Mercifully,  he  had  but  just  time  to 
secure  himself  with  a  bit  of  hambro-line  (it  was  always 
his  practice  to  carry  serviceable  pieces  of  spun-yarn, 
hambro-line,  marline,  etc.,  in  a  big  pocket  he  had  made 
for  the  purpose)  when,  easily,  as  if  he  were  just  falling 
into  a  gentle  sleep,  his  senses  left  him.  And  had  he 
then  died,  it  would  have  been  no  more  to  him  physic- 
ally than  falling  on  sleep.  Years  afterward,  when  the 
stern  battle  seemed  to  be  going  almost  too  hard  for 
him,  he  used  to  look  back  regretfully  upon  that  time, 
and  wistfully  wonder  what  joys  would  have  been  his 
had  he  only  not  awakened  then.  When  he  did  return 
to  consciousness  his  sufferings  were  great.  The  sun 
was  at  its  meridian,  and  shining  strongly  out  of  a  clear 
sky.  There  was  but  a  slight  air  of  wind  with  a  gentle 
swell,  upon  which  his  frail  support  rolled  slightly, 
so  that  the  upper  part  of  his  body  was  dried  and  in- 
crusted  with  salt.  His  eyes  smarted,  burned  as  he 
opened  them  once  again  to  the  light  of  day,  with  some 
difficulty  because  the  lashes  were  thick  with  salt.  His 
tongue  was  like  a  piece  of  leather,  and  his  lips  cracked 
and  bled  when  he  tried  to  moisten  them.  Almost  every 
part  of  him  protested  painfully  against  this  treatment. 
But  gradually  his  mind  became  clear;  all  the  events 

299 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

of  the  past  few  days  were  recalled  up  to  the  time  of  the 
sinking  of  the  great  steamer.  And  then  he  thought  of 
Lizzie,  his  wife.  Thought  of  her  with  a  great  pity  in 
his  heart  as  he  pictured  her  feelings  did  she  but  know 
of  his  present  position. 

This  supplied  the  stimulus  his  body  so  much  needed. 
It  roused  in  him  the  natural  desire  of  life  already  grow- 
ing weak,  and  lifting  up  his  voice  in  the  midst  of  that 
vast  solitude  he  called  upon  God  to  save  his  life,  to  send 
help  before  it  was  too  late  in  order  that  his  poor  young 
wife  should  not  be  so  soon  widowed.  Or,  if  that  might 
not  be,  he  prayed  that  in  some  way  she  might  be  pro- 
vided for,  sheltered  from  the  pitiless  world.  This  bene- 
ficial exercise  of  his  privilege  of  prayer  had  the  most 
restful,  consolatory  effect  upon  him,  and  he  fell  fast 
asleep  again. 

When  he  awoke  it  was  at  the  sound  of  a  human 
voice,  the  touch  of  a  hand,  and  he  thanked  God.  A 
boat  was  lying  by  the  side  of  the  hen-coop  manned  by 
five  swarthy,  piratical-looking  fellows  whose  language 
he  did  not  understand,  although  by  its  sound  he 
thought  it  was  Italian.  They  lifted  him  tenderly  into 
the  boat,  and  then  for  the  first  time  he  saw  the  ship 
they  had  come  from;  a  large  wooden  bark,  deep 
laden,  hove  to  only  a  few  ship's  lengths  away.  They 
soon  reached  her  side,  and  hoisted  Saul  up  in  the  boat 
as  being  the  simplest  way  of  getting  him  on  board. 
He  was  so  full  of  pain  that,  carefully  and  delicately  as 
they  handled  him,  he  could  not  help  letting  a  groan 
escape  him  as  they  removed  him  to  the  cabin,  a  some- 
what dirty,  very  stuffy  apartment,  reeking  with  the 
fumes  of  tobacco  and  garlic,  but  to  him  a  sweet  haven 
of  rest.  In  a  few  minutes  the  cook  appeared,  bearing  a 
pannikin  of  soup,  which  seemed  to  Saul  the  most  deli- 

300 


The  Night  Falls 


ciously  invigorating  food  he  had  ever  tasted.  He  did 
not  know  that  it  was  made  with  wine  instead  of  water, 
or  he  would  no  doubt  most  foolishly  have  refused  it. 
He  felt  the  almost  stagnant  blood  beginning  to  circu- 
late again,  felt  the  glow  of  life  returning,  and  his  heart 
swelled  with  gratitude. 

After  another  period  of  sleep  and  more  soup  he  felt 
sufficiently  revived  to  undertake  the  task  of  trying  to 
relate  his  adventures,  as  well  as  the  much  more  im- 
portant one  of  ascertaining  his  present  destination. 
As  no  one  on  board  spoke  any  English,  and  Saul  was 
no  linguist,  this  was  somewhat  exhausting  work,  but 
at  last  to  his  horror  he  discovered  that  she  was  bound 
from  Cardiff  to  Hong-Kong  with  coal,  and  that  she  had 
already  been  out  of  port  a  fortnight. 

With  all  the  energy  he  could  muster  he  begged  the 
skipper  to  land  him  at  the  Western  Islands,  to  put  him 
on  board  a  homeward-bound  vessel,  to  whatever  port 
she  might  be  going,  but  for  pity's  sake  not  to  carry  him 
away  to  the  other  side  of  the  world  without  his  being 
able  to  earn  anything.  To  all  his  impassioned  en- 
treaties the  captain  listened  attentively,  but  evidently 
without  understanding,  and  evidently  with  a  shrewd 
suspicion  that  the  poor  fellow  was  out  of  his  mind. 
The  latter  felt  himself  that  unless  he  fell  back  upon  his 
faith,  if  he  allowed  himself  to  look  upon  his  position 
purely  from  the  human  side,  he  did  run  great  risk  of 
losing  his  reason,  for  he  knew  full  well  that  as  soon  as 
the  news  of  the  loss  of  the  Ferozepore  became  known 
his  half-pay  would  cease,  and  if  it  should  happen  that 
his  wife  fell  out  of  work  what  would  she  do?  As  it 
was,  the  mental  disturbance  and  strain  threw  him  into 
a  brain  fever,  from  which  only  his  vigorous  constitu- 
tion and  perfect  state  of  health  and  cleanliness  of  life 

301 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

saved  him,  since  the  captain  of  the  Giuseppe  B  knew 
no  more  what  was  the  matter  with  his  patient  than  a 
cow,  and  in  all  probability  even  if  he  had  known  what 
the  malady  was  he  would  have  had  not  the  slightest 
idea  of  how  to  treat  it. 

So  Saul  battled  with  Death.  No  doubt  that  in  pass- 
ing through  the  Valley  of  the  Shadow  the  Friend  of 
the  lonely  was  with  him.  But  the  contest  was  a  terrible 
one,  and  when  he  came  out  of  it,  only  just  alive,  the  old 
tub  was  rolling  leisurely  down  into  the  southeast 
trade  region  to  the  southward  of  the  line.  As  soon  as 
his  mind  became  clear,  he  saw  that  his  long  helplessness 
had  in  no  wise  endeared  him  to  his  shipmates,  for  there 
is  no  place  where  one  gets  less  sympathy  in  a  long 
illness  than  on  board  ship.  One's  help  is  wanted  so 
much,  one's  shipmates  are  able  to  do  so  little  even  if 
they  feel  inclined,  and  unless  people  are  careful  to  cul- 
tivate the  grace  of  patient  compassion  they  soon  get 
callous  for  the  sufferings  of  others.  Saul's  fight  was 
over,  however.  He  would  no  longer  kick  against  what 
he  saw  to  be  the  inevitable,  but  calmly  go  on  doing  all 
he  could  in  his  sorry  position,  praying  that  God  would 
be  with  his  dear  one  at  home.  And  once  having  set- 
tled down,  he  mended  rapidly.  He  began  to  pick  up  a 
few  words  of  the  language,  and  as  his  shipmates  saw 
more  of  him  they  speedily  warmed  towards  him. 
Probably  none  of  them  had  ever  seen  so  smart  a  sailor- 
man  before.  They  watched  him  with  wide-eyed  amaze- 
ment as  he  manipulated  wire  and  rope,  wondering 
much  however  he  did  it,  and  giving  all  the  hearty  ad- 
miration which  sailors  are  capable  of  towards  a  master 
workman  in  their  own  line. 

Saul  was  always  an  industrious  man,  but  he  worked 
double  tides  now  to  keep  his  mind  off  the  agony  of  his 

302 


The  Night  Falls 


position.  In  the  night-watches,  when  he  had  to  stand 
at  the  wheel  or  on  the  lookout  for  two  hours  at  a  time, 
he  had  need  of  all  the  training  he  had  received  to  keep 
from  cursing  his  hard  lot.  It  was  so  difficult  to  see 
how  such  a  fiery  trial  as  this  was  to  be  of  any  use  to 
him.  No  new  discovery,  many  will  say ;  we  never  seem 
to  appreciate  trials  at  their  full  value  somehow.  But 
with  his  mind  busy  all  the  time  with  possibilities  of 
suffering  for  his  wife  at  home,  and  the  disheartening 
spectacle  before  his  eyes  of  the  snail's  pace  made  by  the 
old  bark,  to  say  nothing  of  the  aggravating  content 
that  appeared  to  rest  upon  everybody  else  but  himself 
— those  things  made  his  lot  hard  to  bear  indeed.  The 
food  suited  him  very  well,  much  better,  indeed,  than 
he  could  ever  remember  having  been  satisfied  with 
food  in  the  fo'csles  of  his  own  country  sailing-ships, 
but  the  horrors  of  the  fo'csle  were  too  great  for  him  to 
endure.  So  he  lived  a  hermit's  life  in  the  long-boat 
amidship,  with  only  memories  to  feed  upon.  No 
books,  no  conversation,  and  no  prospect  of  earning 
anything  for  months.  Poor  Saul ! 

Here  we  must  leave  him  to  dree  his  weird,  and 
return  to  London.  As  in  the  case  of  Job  of  old,  it 
seemed  as  if  the  universal  enemy  had  obtained  leave  to 
put  all  his  infernal  arts  into  practice  against  one  of  the 
Lord's  servants  who  had  been  signally  successful  in  the 
never-ending  war  between  good  and  evil.  For  on  the 
second  day  after  Saul's  departure  his  wife  was  simply 
astounded  to  hear  her  cousin,  without  any  preliminary, 
say :  "  Lizzie,  my  dear,  we've  always  been  very  happy 
together,  and  I  like  your  society  very  much,  but  now 
you're  married,  things  ain't  quite  as  they  used  to  be,  are 
they?  An',  to  tell  you  the  truth,  I've  got  a  little  girl 
coming  in  to  do  all  I  want,  and  I  shall  be  glad  if  you'll 

303 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

get  another  place  to  lodge  as  soon  as  you  can.  You're 
a  married  woman  now,  and  can  look  after  yourself." 

Poor  Lizzie  felt  crushed  for  a  moment ;  then  her 
native  spirit  came  to  the  rescue  and  she  said  without 
a  tremor :  "  Very  well,  Carrie,  I  s'pose  you  don't  want 
to  turn  me  out  right  at  once,  do  you  ?  Give  me  a  little 
time  to  get  a  place  and  I'll  go." 

"  Oh,  certainly,"  said  her  cousin ;  "  take  your  time 

by  all  means,  and "  But  happily  there  was  a  caller 

at  that  moment,  and  the  undignified  spectacle  of  a 
quarrel  between  relatives  on  a  mere  point  of  pique  (for 
that  was  the  whole  of  the  cousin's  grievance)  was 
averted. 

So  'Lizzie  went  away  from  the  house  to  begin  her 
search,  very  sorrowful.  It  never  occurred  to  her  to 
seek  out  the  members  of  the  mission  and  confide  in 
them.  She  knew  that  her  husband  would  have  wished 
her  to  do  so,  but  to  tell  the  truth  she  was  a  little  jealous 
of  the  influence  the  mission  had  over  him.  She  was 
not  at  all  drawn  to  any  of  its  members  herself,  and 
had  already  quite  forgotten  that  it  was  there  she  had 
met  him  she  loved — or  thought  she  did.  Now  he  was 
gone  (her  husband),  she  was  not  so  sure  whether  she 
had  not  been  too  precipitate.  Whether  she  really  was  as 
fond  of  him  as  she  had  believed  while  he  was  here. 
Whether  it  was  worth  while  marrying  a  man  of  whose 
company  you  could  only  enjoy  three  weeks  or  a  month 
of  each  year,  just  to  give  him  an  idea  that  he  was 
worth  so  much  more  to  you  than  any  landsman  that 
you  could  bear  the  long  absences  for  the  sake  of  the 
week  or  two  of  perfect  happiness  in  his  company.  It 
is  a  very  difficult  and  delicate  point  to  touch  upon,  but 
there  is  no  doubt  that  when  a  young  woman  gets  mar- 
ried she  acquires  a  strong  desire  for  a  man's  company 

304 


The  Night  Falls 


at  all  times.  Naturally,  and  if  she  be  left  alone,  unless 
her  love,  her  faith,  and  her  virtue  be  all  firmly  an- 
chored deep  down  in  the  solid  rock  of  God,  she  is  in 
very  great  danger  indeed.  I  have  always  felt  that 
sailors'  wives  should  receive  special  attention  from 
those  interested  in  the  sailor  whenever  they  are  liable 
to  be  left  without  friends  near  them  to  keep  them  com- 
pany and  make  the  heavy  hours  pass  quicker.  I  could 
tell  (but  not  in  print)  some  terribly  tragic  stories  of 
lives  wrecked,  of  good,  beautiful  women  going  astray 
simply  and  solely  because  their  lives  were  so  dreary. 
And  the  first  false  step  having  been  taken,  the  succes- 
sive dowmvard  stages  follow  in  horribly  swift  progres- 
sion. 

First  of  all,  Mrs.  Andrews,  to  give  Lizzie  her  full 
title,  found  a  serious  difficulty  in  obtaining  a  room — a 
room,  that  is,  in  a  decent  house.  Why,  oh  why,  should 
this  be  so  ?  Why  should  it  be  made  so  difficult  for  fe- 
males to  live  unless  they  have  friends  and  a  home,  when 
men  can  get  on  so  differently?  A  question  like  this 
cannot  be  answered  hurriedly,  but  I  feel  a  deep  per- 
sonal interest  in  its  solution,  because  the  young  wife 
had  to  seek  till  she  was  heart-sick  as  well  as  foot-weary 
before  she  found  a  place  to  lay  her  lonely  head,  and 
then  she  was  treated  more  like  a  pauper  than  a  solvent 
payer  of  rent.  Indeed,  she  said  that  had  she  been 
single  it  would  have  been  easier  for  her  to  find  a  room 
which  the  proprietors  thereof  would  be  willing  to  let 
to  her  than  she  found  it  being  married.  At  last,  to  her 
great  relief,  the  young  wife  succeeded  in  finding  a 
room  in  the  house  of  a  worthy  couple  who,  when 
they  heard  her  story,  were  exceedingly  sympathetic. 
But  even  they,  gave  her  clearly  to  understand  that  if 
she  could  not  pay  her  rent  for  one  week  she  must  go. 

305 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

They  were  so  poor  that  they  dared  not  run  the  risk  of 
having  the  room  empty  for  a  day,  or  of  losing  a  day's 
rent ;  while  as  to  running  up  a  bill,  it  was  not  to  be 
thought  of.  Their  superior  landlord  called  for  his  rent 
every  Monday  morning,  and  it  must  be  ready  for  him, 
though  the  whole  family  should  have  to  go  without 
food  to  obtain  it.  Lizzie  assured  them  that  there  was 
no  danger  of  her  not  paying,  and  proudly  exhibited 
her  half-pay  paper.  Poor  girl,  in  her  ignorance  she 
imagined  that  the  £2  $s.  per  month  it  guaranteed  was 
something  in  the  nature  of  Bank  of  England  dividends. 
The  possibility  of  its  failing  never  occurred  to  her. 
And  she  got  work  too — she  had  a  good  sewing  ma- 
chine— got  work  making  ladies'  ulsters  at  us.  6d.  per 
dozen.  The  handsome,  smirking  Jew  who  gave  them 
out  to  her  assured  her  that  he  had  given  her  the  best- 
paid  work  in  the  shop ;  but  when  she  found  that  even 
her  deft  fingers  could  scarcely  complete  three  of  them 
by  close  application  for  thirteen  hours,  she  began  to 
wonder  what  sort  of  a  life  the  women  led  who  made 
the  cheaper  ones — down,  for  instance,  to  45.  gd.  per 
dozen.  Spurred  by  the  fear  of  being  left  to  want,  she 
overworked  herself  and  fell  ill.  And  utterly  unable 
to  work  her  machine,  she  must  needs  send  back  the 
unfinished  garments,  not,  however,  before  she  had 
tried  to  get  them  done  locally.  That  was  hopeless, 
unless  she  could  have  found  some  one  working  like 
herself.  The  first  person  she  asked  was  a  private  man- 
tle-maker, who  said  that  as  Mrs.  Andrews  was  in  the 
trade  she  would  make  those  three  ulsters  for  95.  6d. 
each.  When  she  was  told  that  the  rate  of  pay  allowed 
by  Isaacstein  &  Co.  was  n-Jrf.  each,  she  simply  sniffed 
derisively  and  retired,  not  saying  another  word. 

There  is  no  feature  of  our  commercial  system  more 
306 


The  Night  Falls 


damnable  than  this  (and  there  are  many  really  dam- 
nable things  in  it),  that  every  middle-man  through 
whose  hands  a  garment  passes  shall  make  more  profit 
out  of  it  than  the  poor  slave  who  produced  the  cloth,  or 
the  still  poorer  slave  who  produced  the  garment  out  of 
the  cloth.  Be  you  very  sure,  those  of  you  who  buy 
cheap  "  ready-mades,"  that  the  wealthy  merchant  who 
"  handles  "  them  gets  far  more  profit  out  of  each  piece 
than  the  poor  creature  who  sits  with  her  eyes  glued  to 
her  flying  needle  almost  night  and  day.  Do  not  im- 
agine that  these  things  have  passed  away.  It  is  such 
a  common  retort  when  one  speaks  of  an  abuse :  "  Oh, 
it  used  to  be  like  that,  but  it  isn't  so  any  longer !  "  But 
it  is  also  a  most  dangerous  one,  because  we  wish  to 
believe  it,  and  often  do  without  troubling  about  proof, 
while  too  often  it  is  utterly  untrue.  But  Lizzie  An- 
drews troubled  her  head  about  none  of  these  things. 
Being  one  of  the  suffering  ones,  she  suffered  in  silence, 
feeling,  if  not  knowing,  the  uselessness  of  complaint, 
and  comforting  herself  with  the  knowledge  that  at  any 
rate  she  could  not  starve  whether  she  got  work  or  not, 
since  she  had  her  half-pay  of  one  shilling  and  sixpence 
a  day.  It  is  true  that  many  of  us  would  be  able  to  see 
little  in  such  a  sum  but  slow  starvation  in  London, 
where  rent  alone  is  such  an  item.  To  Lizzie,  however, 
it  was  a  veritable  sheet  anchor  by  the  help  of  which 
she  would  weather  the  storm  now  upon  her.  Then, 
suddenly,  as  the  stress  of  the  ship  plunging  at  her  cable 
in  the  teeth  of  the  howling  tempest  and  finding  a  weak 
link  in  it  snaps  it,  and  begins  to  drift  awfully  on  the 
jagged  rocks  gnashing  astern,  there  came  to  this  poor 
soul  the  news  of  the  loss  of  Saul's  ship  with  all  hands, 
and  the  consequent  stoppage  of  his  half-pay. 

She  lay  down  on  her  poor  bed  and  moaned  like  a 

307 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

hurt  animal,  inarticulately,  hopelessly.  For  hours  she 
lay  there,  no  one  coming  to  see  her,  and  had  she  died, 
as  so  many  do,  there  would  have  been  a  long  and  ut- 
terly unprofitable  inquiry  into  her  death,  and  an  open 
verdict.  At  last  the  doctor  came.  He  was  a  young 
man  who,  to  work  up  a  practice  and  at  the  same  time 
earn  something,  had  opened  a  dispensary  in  the  neigh- 
bourhood to  which  Lizzie  had  moved.  Although  only 
three  months  established  there,  he  had  already  earned  a 
reputation  for  kindness  and  attention  that  was  bearing 
good  fruit.  His  charges  to  his  dispensary  patients 
wrere  ridiculously  low:  6d.  for  advice  and  medicine,  is. 
per  visit  at  their  own  homes.  And  for  this  he  did  a 
great  deal.  Also,  if  he  found  a  patient  really  too  poor 
to  pay  he  freely  attended  them  and  gave  them  medi- 
cine for  nothing.  Of  course,  in  order  to  do  this  it  was 
necessary  that  he  should  have  a  little  private  means 
of  his  own,  and  this  he  obtained  by  marrying  a  lady 
with  an  income  of  £200  a  year. 

From  all  of  which  information  concerning  him  it 
will  be  understood  that  when  Lizzie  saw  him  at  her 
bedside  she  felt  as  if  she  were  not  utterly  friendless, 
and  in  a  very  few  minutes  he  was  in  possession  of  her 
pitiful  little  story.  He  was  much  moved,  promised  to 
supply  her  needs  until  she  could  obtain  work,  and  then, 
acting  upon  some  devilish  impulse,  he  stooped  and 
kissed  her.  And  she  did  not  resent  this  familiarity ; 
felt,  indeed,  rather  proud  of  it,  while  carefully  keeping 
out  of  her  mind  the  fact  that  she  had  taken  the  first 
downward  step.  The  rest  soon  followed,  and  for  three 
months  he  visited  this  married  woman  sinfully.  Then, 
becoming  afraid,  or  perhaps  weary,  he  removed  to  an- 
other part  of  the  country,  having  sold  his  practice  to 
an  elderly  doctor. 

308 


The  Night  Falls 


Now,  by  the  usual  rules,  Mrs.  Andrews,  having 
fallen,  should  have  come  boldly  out  and  led  a  life  of 
open  sin.  But  this  was  an  exception.  Having  ob- 
tained work,  she  lived  respectably  after  her  paramour 
had  left  her,  lapsing,  but  so  seldom  and  so  secretly 
that  she  was  never  so  much  as  suspected.  And  in  this 
dreadful  condition  we  must  leave  her  for  the  present, 
with  the  sad  reflection  that  she  is  a  type  of  a  very  nu- 
merous class  in  this  London  of  ours.  The  topic  is  a 
painful  one,  and  need  not  be  dwelt  upon,  but  no  good 
can  be  done  by  blinking  the  facts.  What,  however, 
makes  this  particular  case  doubly  sad  is  the  recollec- 
tion that  had  this  poor  woman  but  gone  to  the  mis- 
sion and  made  known  her  need  when  first  it  arose,  she 
would  have  been  helped  to  the  last  farthing  of  their 
poor  abilities,  not  only  for  her  own  but  for  Saul's  sake. 
Instead,  as  if  courting  disaster,  she  must  needs  go 
right  away  among  strangers  and  deliberately  allow 
herself  to  be  led  into  iniquity. 

And  all  this  time,  half  a  world  away,  Saul  was  stead- 
fastly awaiting  deliverance.  When  once  the  battle  with 
himself  was  won,  patience  and  faithful  waiting  upon 
God  resumed  their  sway  in  his  rested  soul.  Even  the 
hardship  of  being  utterly  without  reading  matter, 
above  all  a  Bible,  became  bearable  after  a  time.  He 
had  to  learn  the  love  of  great  silences.  Never  learn- 
ing sufficient  Italian  to  converse  with  his  shipmates, 
he  used  to  sit  alone  and  fix  his  thoughts  upon  unseens, 
or  allow  his  soul  to  bathe  itself  in  the  glories  all  around. 
But  chiefly  he  loved  to  lie  in  the  long,  calm  nights  of 
the  tropics  on  his  back  on  the  fo'csle  head  with  his 
eyes  fixed  upon  the  vast  star-besprinkled  space  above 
him,  recalling  all  he  could  of  the  words  of  the  Bible, 
and  thinking  upon  the  glories  of  heaven  until  his  cul- 

309 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

tivated  imagination  almost  made  him  see  indescrib- 
able visions  with  the  outward  eyes  of  sense.  Doubtless 
in  the  perfecting  of  this  fine  man's  character  these  long, 
long  days  of  almost  monastic  seclusion,  as  far  as  his 
mind  was  concerned,  played  a  most  important  part,  and, 
blessedly  for  him,  he  did  not  know  anything  of  what 
was  going  on  at  home ;  neither  did  he  permit  himself 
any  longer  to  anticipate  evil.  He  prayed  without  ceas- 
ing for  his  darling,  and  was  content  to  leave  the  answer- 
ing to  God.  That  his  prayers  were  not  answered  is 
true,  as  is  also  the  fact  that  it  is  impossible  to  see  why. 
But  then,  when  we  come  to  that,  we  are  at  once  con- 
fronted with  so  great  an  array  of  similar  cases  that  we 
must,  if  we  be  indeed  faithful  believers  in  the  loving 
Fatherhood  of  God,  fall  back  upon  our  one  great 
stronghold.  "  In  that  day  God  will  be  justified  in  all 
things  by  his  Son." 

At  last,  one  hundred  and  ninety-eight  days  after 
Saul  was  picked  up,  the  Giuseppe  B  lumbered  slowly 
and  clumsily  into  Hong-Kong  harbour,  her  paint, 
bleached  nearly  to  the  wood,  off  hull  and  yards  by 
months  of  sun  and  rain ;  her  sails  worn  to  muslin  by 
their  long,  long,  profitless  slatting  against  the  masts ;  all 
that  part  of  her  beneath  the  water  and  much  above 
incrusted  with  stony  sea  growths  and  festooned  with 
dank,  black-green  moss  that  rose  and  fell  with  each 
movement  of  the  sea  like  a  floating  shroud.  She 
looked  as  if  some  long-ago  given-up  derelict  had  been 
suddenly  restored  to  the  busy  world  of  men.  Saul's 
heart  beat  high  with  thankfulness  as  the  old  ship  sailed 
up  the  well-remembered  harbour  into  which  he  had 
so  often  steamed  in  the  old  days  when  he  was  a  quar- 
ter-master in  one  of  the  Glen  boats.  Nor  did  even  the 
knowledge  that  no  news  could  be  awaiting  him  from 

310 


The  Night  Falls 


home,  or  that  from  him  no  news  could  reach  home  for 
nearly  two  months,  suffice  to  depress  him. 

No  sooner  was  the  anchor  down  and  the  decks 
cleared  up  than  Saul  went  aft  and  appealed  respectfully 
to  the  mate,  the  captain  having,  of  course,  gone  ashore, 
to  allow  him  to  land.  This,  however,  the  mate  dared 
not  do  without  the  captain's  permission,  and  so  Saul, 
comforting  himself  as  best  he  could  with  the  reflection 
that  it  was  past  office  hours,  resigned  himself  to  an- 
other night  on  board  the  old  hulk  that  had — oh,  so 
slowly ! — borne  him  to  this  far-off  part  of  the  world. 
Bright  and  early  he  sought  the  captain,  who  as  well 
as  he  could  made  him  understand  that  he  was  very  well 
pleased  with  Saul's  behaviour  while  on  board ;  that  he 
was  free  to  go  whenever  he  would ;  and  that,  but  for 
the  fact  that  he,  the  skipper,  was  a  very  poor  man,  he 
would  have  been  glad  to  give  Saul  his  monthly  wage 
the  same  as  the  rest  of  the  men  earned.  As  it  was  all 
he  could,  do,  and  that  out  of  his  own  pocket,  was  to 
give  him  twenty  dollars.  With  this  pitiful  sum  Saul 
was  obliged  to  be  content,  knowing  that  he  could  get 
no  more.  So,  gathering  the  few  ragged  garments  to- 
gether that  had  been  given  him,  he  went  ashore, 
straight  to  the  post-office,  and  writing  there  a  long 
loving  letter  to  his  wife,  he  sent  her  the  whole  of  the 
money  he  had  just  received  except  the  cost  of  postage 
and  transmission.  Then  he  turned  his  steps  towards 
the  shipping  office,  and  told  his  story.  He  was  listened 
to  in  silence,  and  then  asked  if  he  would  take  a  pas- 
sage home  in  one  of  the  blue-funnelled  boats  to  Eng- 
land as  a  distressed  seaman.  This  he  refused,  not  wish- 
ing to  arrive  at  home  penniless.  The  official  shrugged 
his  shoulders  and  replied :  "  That's  all  I  can  do  for-  you, 
then." 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

Outside  the  shipping  office  Saul  stood  awhile,  won- 
dering what  he  would  do  now.  Suddenly  he  caught 
sight  of  a  white  policeman  striding  towards  him,  and, 
intercepting  him  as  he  was  passing,  he  asked  him  if 
there  was  in  the  place  a  seaman's  mission,  and  if  so 
would  he  direct  the  speaker  thereto.  Now,  the  police- 
man was  a  Christian,  and  to  receive  such  an  application 
warmed  his  heart.  So  he  led  Saul  to  the  mission,  en- 
tered with  him  and  introduced  him,  and  made  ar- 
rangements for  their  meeting  again  that  evening. 
Now  Saul's  present  troubles  were  all  overcome.  In  the 
first  place  he  was  in  the  midst  of  a  congenial  environ- 
ment ;  in  the  next,  all  the  help  that  he  so  much  needed 
in  food,  lodging,  and  clothing  was  extended  to  him,  and 
one  gentleman,  a  merchant  who  was  a  stanch  friend 
of  the  mission,  even  offered  to  cable  home  to  Saul's 
wife  the  news  of  his  safety  at  large  cost.  But  this  Saul 
refused,  not  seeing  where  the  benefit  would  come,  and 
feeling  that  it  was  not  right  to  waste  so  much  of  other 
people's  money. 

One  very  happy  week  he  spent  in  Hong-Kong,  and 
then,  not  being  able,  to  get  a  berth  as  bo'sun,  he 
shipped  before  the  mast  in  a  fine  American  ship  bound 
for  Manila  to  load  hemp  for  New  York.  When  he 
came  on  board  he  found  himself,  to  his  surprise,  in  an 
almost  palatial  house  on  deck,  with  a  table  running  its 
whole  length,  light,  clean,  and  well  ventilated.  He 
found  the  food  not  only  good  in  quality  and  having 
plenty  of  variety,  but  excellently  cooked,  and  served  as 
if  men  were  going  to  eat  it  and  not  hogs.  His  ship- 
mates were  a  mixed  medley  of  races,  but  principally 
Scandinavians,  all  well  drilled  and  as  smart  as  could 
well  be.  As  for  brutality,  there  was  none.  There  was 
no  need  of  it.  An  order  sharply  given  was  obeyed  with 

312 


The  Night  Falls 


the  utmost  alacrity  and  cheerfulness,  for  every  man 
had  learned  that  it  is  just  as  easy  to  obey  smartly  and 
willingly  where  obedience  must  be  rendered,  as  it  is 
to  skulk  and  scowl  through  one's  obvious  duties.  In 
the  delight  which  Saul  felt  at  being  on  board  of  such  a 
ship,  and  under  such  a  system,  he  almost  forgot  the 
crushing  burden  of  his  trouble,  especially  as  he  re- 
ceived a  month's  advance  of  another  four  pounds, 
which  he  was  able  to  send  home  intact  to  the  poor 
girl  whom  he  saw  in  his  mind's  eye  suffering  and  sor- 
rowing for  him. 

He  left  Hong-Kong  with  the  hearty  good  wishes  of 
all  whom  he  had  met  there,  well  supplied  with  clothes 
by  their  liberality,  and  with  such  a  stock  of  good  reading 
matter  as  would  last  him  all  the  way  home  most  com- 
fortably. He  felt  as  if  at  last  the  long  and  dreary  lane 
he  had  been  travelling  had  found  its  turning,  and  that 
the  pathway  before  him  promised  to  be  bright  right 
to  the  end.  He  was  in  a  good  ship,  with  smart  offi- 
cers and  a  well-disciplined  crew,  and  having  a  joy 
in  doing  that  which  the  hand  found  to  do  with  all  his 
might,  found  life  again  very  pleasant  for  him. 


313 


CHAPTER   XXVII 

THE   MISSION    PROSPERS 

MEANWHILE  events  at  the  mission  had  been  with- 
out much  stirring  interest  to  the  little  outside  world 
of  their  immediate  neighbourhood,  though  never  lack- 
ing in  variety  and  fulness  of  marvel  to  those  who  were 
responsible  for  its  maintenance  and  direction.  Jem- 
my, poor  man,  had  passed  through  a  very  furnace  of 
affliction  at  home.  Being  suspected  by  Mrs.  Maskery 
of  heaven  knows  what  infidelities  and  other  dark  in- 
iquities, she  took  to  stealing  about  after  him  and 
neglecting  her  household  work  to  do  so.  She  would 
waylay  him  at  street  corners  as  he  was  coming  home 
at  night,  and  in  the  rancour  of  her  jealousy  would 
have  believed  any  evil  of  him,  although  told  her  by 
people  whom  she  knew  were  to  be  trusted  not  at  all. 
Being  tender-hearted,  affectionate,  and  true  as  steel, 
such  a  course  of  treatment  was  felt  by  Jemmy  to  be  al- 
most unbearable.  But  he  got  some  little  comfort  from 
the  thought  that  perhaps  his  poor  wife  was  being  used 
to  chasten  him  for  the  sin  that  he  had  committed  with 
respect  to  the  finances.  And  also,  of  course,  in  the 
knowledge  of  his  perfect  innocence.  The  greatest  suf- 
ferer, however,  was  Mrs.  Maskery  herself.  By  dint  of 
constant  self-torture  she  was  worn  to  skin  and  bone. 
The  poor  baby,  naturally  taking  her  miserable  bodily 
state  from  her,  fretted  continually,  so  that  she  got 

314 


The  Mission   Prospers 

scarcely  any  sleep,  and  at  last,  when  standing  watch- 
ing Jemmy  preaching  on  the  "  Waste,"  she  got  wet 
through  in  a  sudden  heavy  shower.  It  was  the  last 
straw.  Next  morning  she  was  unable  to  rise ;  pneu- 
monia had  set  in  and  delirium  supervened.  Ah,  but 
it  was  pitiful  to  hear  her  self-reproach !  Nozv  she  had 
no  word  of  suspicion,  much  less  of  condemnation,  for 
her  husband ;  her  poor,  diseased  mind  clung  continu- 
ally to  memories  of  his  faithfulness,  his  compassion, 
his  brave  and  cheerful  nature.  And  Jemmy  sat  by  her 
bedside  holding  her  burning  hand,  with  the  big  tears 
of  sympathy  rolling  down  his  face  as  he  prayed  with- 
out ceasing  that  the  Lord  would  spare  her  to  him  yet  a 
little  while. 

Meanwhile  the  baby,  never  very  strong,  having 
been  of  necessity  separated  from  its  suffering  mother, 
speedily  pined  away  and  died.  Of  that  event  Mrs. 
Maskery  was  mercifully  kept  in  ignorance,  and  a  natu- 
rally strong  constitution,  inured  to  hardships  and  of 
great  vigour,  enabled  her  body,  enfeebled  though  it 
had  been  through  her  foolish  worry,  to  triumph  over 
the  dreadful  disease.  As  she  grew  slowly  convalescent 
she  became  accustomed  to  seeing  her  husband  always 
near  her,  felt  as  if  she  must  have  his  bright,  patient 
face  to  gaze  upon  or  she  could  make  no  progress.  But 
she  wondered,  too,  how  it  was  that  he  could  do  this ; 
how  the  bread  was  being  earned  and  the  landlord  paid. 
At  last,  when  her  uneasiness  became  acute,  she  asked 
him  how  they  were  living.  In  a  broken  voice  Jemmy 
informed  her  that  William  Maylie,  the  young  clerk 
who  had  become  their  treasurer,  and  Jemmy  Paterson, 
the  costermonger,  were  jointly  providing  for  all  their 
needs  so  that  he  could  stay  at  home  and  nurse  her. 
As  for  his  business,  his  father  and  uncle  were  attend- 

315 


ing  to  the  orders  between  them,  so  that  he  was  unlikely 
to  lose  anything  in  that  way.  Taking  things  all  round, 
he  gratefully  said,  they  were  better  off  than  they  had 
been  for  a  very  long  time ;  and  a  Christian  friend,  who 
had  heard  of  their  case,  had  provided  a  month's  holi- 
day at  the  seaside  at  a  convalescent  home  as  soon  as 
Mrs.  Maskery  was  well  enough  to  be  moved.  As  soon 
as  she  heard  this  she  announced  her  intention  of  refus- 
ing such  an  offer  for  herself.  She  had  been  lying  idle 
there  much  too  long,  she  said,  and  her  fingers  itched 
to  be  seeing  about  her  home  again.  "  Ar !  "  Jemmy  re- 
marked with  a  sigh,  "  I  see  yer  don't  fink  yer  k'n  trus' 
me  aht  ov  yer  sight  yet.  I'm  so  sorry  fer  that,  'cause 
I  did  fink  yer'd  got  over  that  by  this  time." 

Nothing  that  the  little  man  could  have  imagined 
and  put  into  words  could  have  been  more  effective 
than  this  simple  protest.  His  wife,  completely  broken 
down,  utterly  remorseful,  implored  his  forgiveness, 
owning  that  she  could  never  forgive  herself  for  her 
hateful,  groundless  suspicions  of  him.  She  declared 
that  all  through  her  illness  she  was  haunted  by  horrible 
fears  of  dying  without  his  forgiveness,  feeling  that  if 
she  did  she  would  go  to  hell  and  never  see  him  any 
more.  And  that  she  had  vowed  to  God  that  if  he 
spared  her  she  would  prove  her  sincerity  by  never 
suspecting  her  husband  again,  by  believing  his  word 
before  anybody  else's,  and  finally,  by  curbing  the  bit- 
terness of  her  tongue  towards  him.  "  Ah,  Jim,  ole 
sweet 'art !  "  she  sighed,  sinking  back  on  her  pillow, 
"  I've  a-learned  a  good  many  fings  lyin'  'ere ;  that  I 
'ave.  But  the  best  finer  I  learnt  was  wot  I  knowed  in 
my  'eart  long  ago,  that  you  was  the  bes'  man  in  the 
world — ter  me,  anyhow,  an'  that  in  fucher  I  mus'  try 
an'  show  yer  every  way  I  can  that  I  do  believe  in  yer, 


The  Mission  Prospers 

an'  love  yer  wiv  all  my  'eart  an'  soul.  An'  as  ter  goin' 
away,  I'll  do  anyfink  y'arsk  me.  to.  I  s'pose  I  can 
'ave  baby." 

There  was  a  painful  silence  for  a  moment,  and  then 
with  white  lips  Jemmy  replied :  "  No,  you  carn't,  dear. 
Baby's  dead."  Again  that  awed  hush  while  the  be- 
reaved mother,  her  eyes  fixed  on  vacancy,  rallied  her 
mental  forces  after  the  shock.  Dry-eyed,  she  spoke 
at  last,  saying  huskily  and  quietly :  "  My  pretty  little 
lamb.  So  she's  gone,  an'  I  never  see  her  go.  Well, 
God  knows  best,  I  know,  but  I  would  'a'  liked  t'  'ave 
seen  'er  pore  little  body.  Gord  'elp  me.  Bless  'im, 
'e's  a-'elpin'  me  ;  I  feel  it.  'Ow's  all  the  hothers  ?  " 

"  All  well  and  strong  an'  'earty,  thank  God,"  said 
Jemmy.  "  An'  nah  we  mus'  get  you  set  up  agen  as 
soon  as  we  can,  'corse  all  on  us  wants  muvver  bad. 
'Ow  we've  missed  yer  I  can't  never  tell  ye."  , 

"  All  right,  ole  dear ;  I'll  go,  then,  as  I've  said," 
she  replied,  "  but  wotever  I'm  t'  do  fur  close  I  carn't 
fink.  I  don't  want  t'  say  a  word  t'  'urt  yer  feelin's, 
dear,  but  I  ain't  got  a  decent  rag  t'  my  back.  As  long 
as  I'm  at  'ome  in  me  own  place  it  don't  matter  so  much, 
but  I  carn't  go  away  wivout  a  little  close  fit  fur  uvver 
people  t'  look  at  in  case  I  was  took  ill  agen,  can  I  ?  " 

To  her  intense  surprise  Jemmy  made  her  no  direct 
answer,  but  stepping  into  the  next  room  he  brought 
thence  a  fairly  well-worn  but  still  presentable  Glad- 
stone bag.  This  he  opened  before  her  astonished  eyes, 
and  revealed  a  really  good  stock  of  underclothing  all 
neatly  packed.  "'  This  'ere  lot  was  sent  'ere  wiv  a  label 
on  it — '  Mrs.  Maskery  ' — w'ile  you  was  ill.  Finkin' 
p'raps  there  might  be  somfmk  in  it  that  'd  go  bad  if 
it  was  left,  I  opened  it.  I  don't  know  where  it  come 
from,  nor  I  don't  fink  that  need  bower  erse  a  bit. 

317 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

'Ere  it  is,  an'  it's  yores.  I'm  so  fankful  I  don't  know 
what  to  do." 

There  was  just  a  little  feeling  of  resentment  at  the 
idea  of  having  to  wear  somebody  else's  cast-off  cloth- 
ing (for  though  very  good  and  hardly  worn,  the  things 
were  evidently  second-hand) ;  but  that  soon  passed 
off  in  the  deep  content  the  poor  woman  felt  in  the  pos- 
session of  these  much-needed  garments.  And  Jemmy, 
wonderfully  lightened  in  heart  and  mind,  went  about 
the  house,  cleaning,  cooking,  etc.,  singing  in  his  high 
falsetto  such  fragments  of  joyful  hymns  as  occurred 
to  him.  But  while  thus  happy  and  making  himself 
useful,  a  postman's  rap  startled  him.  Taking  the  let- 
ter, with  the  official  stamp  of  the  parochial  authorities 
on  the  flap  of  its  envelope,  he  stood  looking  at  it  for 
a  moment  with  that  stunned  expression  common  to 
people  in  humble  life  who  seldom  receive  a  letter. 
Then,  tearing  it  open,  he  read  a  curt  announcement 
from  the  secretary  at  the  infirmary  that  Mary  Wilkin- 
son, admitted  into  the  maternity  ward  on  the  — th  ult, 
was  safely  delivered  of  a  son,  but  died  shortly  after- 
ward, the  child  dying  the  next  day.  The  interment 
was  carried  out  the  day  after. 

Jemmy  heaved  a  sigh  and  said  to  himself :  "  Poor 
crechur!  P'raps  it  was  better  so.  She'd  'ave  'ad  a 
'ard  time  of  it  if  she'd  lived.  Nah,  by  the  grace  o' 
Gord,  she's  at  rest."  And  he  went  about  his  work 
again.  And  that  was  the  poor  girl's  only  requiem. 
How  sordid  and  vulgar!  some  may  say.  I  disagree. 
Life  and  death,  no  matter  what  their  surroundings,  in- 
variably rise  above  any  suspicion  of  sordidness  or  vul- 
garity, and  this  poor  creature's  little  history  had  in  it  all 
the  elements  of  the  highest,  most  sublime  tragedy. 
Why  should  her  position  in  life  make  any  difference? 


The  Mission  Prospers 

It  was  Thursday,  and  after  Jemmy  had  done  the 
house  up,  finding  that  his  wife  was  so  much  brighter 
and  better,  he  timidly  suggested  the  possibility  of  his 
being  able  to  run  down  to  the  Hall  for  an  hour  or  so. 
To  his  great  delight  she  was  not  only  willing  but  anx- 
ious that  he  should  go.  "  I  want  yer  t'  put  up  a  thanks- 
givin'  fer  me,  if  ye  will,"  she  said.  "  Tell  'em  all  'at  I'm 
'umbly  grateful  fer  Cord's  mercy ;  tell  'em  I've  had  a 
signal  evidence  of  'is  goodness  an'  luv,  an'  that  I'll  try 
my  uttermost  t'  'elp  forward  the  cause  of  Gord  if  'e 
spares  me  t'  return  t'  the  world  of  work."  So  Jemmy 
went.  Went  and  found  that  for  a  Thursday  night  there 
was  a  record  attendance.  During  his  absence  at  his 
sick  wife's  bedside  there  had  been  a  sort  of  dual  control. 
Maylie,  the  young  clerk,  and  Paterson,  the  coster,  had 
been  working  like  Trojans,  and  their  ministry  had  been 
abundantly  successful.  Bill  Harrop,  too,  had  been 
supporting  them,  but  he  had  developed  the  finer  as- 
pects of  the  Christian  character,  the  ability  to  stand 
aside  and  let  the  Lord  use  whomsoever  he  will  so  long 
as  the  kingdom's  cause  is  advanced.  To  stand  at  the 
door  and  hand  out  the  hymn-books ;  to  sweep  up  the 
Hall  after  everybody  had  gone  ;  to  be  first  to  come  and 
last  to  go — these  were  Bill  Harrop's  ambitions,  if  by 
such  a  name  they  might  properly  be  called.  When 
chaffed  about  his  earnestness  he  would  say :  "  Ar,  if 
you'd  a-ben  dahn  inter  th'  dirty  'ell  'at  I  'ave,  an'  ben 
pulled  erp  agen  inter  th'  clean  'eaven  'at  I  'ave,  you 
couldn't  wonder  at  my  be'avin'  as  I  do.  I  carn't  'elp 
it ;  no,  I  carn't,  an'  "  —here  he  whispered  mysteriously 
— "  I  woodn't  if  I  could.  I  like  it  too  much.  I  sleeps 
like  a  baby,  I  eats  anyfink  'at  comes  along  wiv  a 
'  Fank  Cord  '  for  it,  my  wife  an'  kids  fair  wusshups  the 
grahnd  I  walks  on  an'  me !  Oh,  you  don't  know  what 

319    , 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

a  dirty  dorg  I  was,  an'  would  be  nah  if  it  wasn't  fer 
'im,  the  Lord  Gord  Allmighty." 

In  consequence  of  these  labours,  undertaken  mainly 
because  they  felt  (the  workers)  that  loyalty  to  Jemmy 
in  his  deep  trouble  demanded  them,  there  was  a  spirit 
of  enthusiasm,  of  earnest  attention  in  the  hope  of  get- 
ting more  wisdom  from  above,  abroad  that  Jemmy 
never  remembered  having  seen  before.  When  he  ap- 
peared on  the  platform,  his  face  aglow  with  thankful- 
ness, there  was  a  long-drawn  breath,  and  then — it 
would  not  be  restrained — an  uproarious  burst  of  ap- 
plause. The  leader  of  this  welcome  was  poor  old 
Woody ;  at  least  I  call  him  poor  remembering  his  much- 
patched  garments,  his  thin,  pale  face,  his  rounded  shoul- 
ders, and  thin,  gray  hair.  But  he  would,  I  am  sure,  have 
fiercely  resented  any  such  adjective  being  applied  to 
him.  How  could  any  man  as  happy  as  he  be  called 
poor?  So  they  clapped,  and  stamped,  and  shouted  till 
they  were  tired,  and  at  last  Jemmy  got  a  chance  to 
say  a  word.  Nothing  would  give  me  greater  pleasure 
than  to  reproduce  for  you  his  speech,  but  I  fear  it 
might  possibly  pall  upon  you.  It  must  therefore  suf- 
fice to  say  that  he  told  with  much  pathos  the  story 
of  his  wife's  illness,  of  his  baby's  death,  of  the  passing 
of  the  poor  girl  who  had  been  helped  over  her  ter- 
rible trouble  by  Saul  and  himself.  All  this  he  did  in 
the  most  perfectly  natural  manner  possible,  and  its 
effect  was  marvellous.  Subject,  of  course,  to  correc- 
tion, I  feel  that  this  is  the  secret  of  all  successful 
oratory,  whether  in  preaching  or  otherwise:  To  give 
the  listeners  stories  of  such  life  as  they  understand  with 
a  lifting  application.  It  was  the  way  of  the  Lord  him- 
self, and  there  can  be  no  better.  Go  through  our  pic- 
ture-galleries and  note  the  expressions  of  the  faces  of 

320 


The  Mission  Prospers 

those  who  gaze.  Before  a  lovely  rendering  of  some 
old  lying  story  from  the  Greek  mythology  they  gape 
unmoved ;  but  let  a  picture  of  present-day  heroism  be 
brought  before  them,  and  you  shall  see  the  human 
sympathy,  the  tears  falling  fast.  This  may  be  Philistin- 
ism, but  if  so,  I  am  glad  to  be  a  Philistine. 

So  Jemmy  preached  and  prayed  as  of  old,  but  with 
an  added  power  that  neither  he  nor  his  hearers  could 
have  explained.  He  swayed  them  as  the  wind  the 
leaves,  and  when  at  last  he  sat  down  there  was  a  long- 
drawn  sigh  of  disappointment  that  he  had  ended  so 
soon.  But  it  was  soon  made  up  for  by  the  following 
speakers — Harrop  and  Paterson  and  Maylie.  They, 
too,  met  with  much  acceptance,  for  all  there  knew  how 
they  had  worked  and  prayed  during  the  absence  of 
their  much-loved  superintendent.  When  they  had 
finished  their  various  speeches  Jemmy  rose  again  to 
address  the  meeting.  He  said :  "  Brevren  an'  sisters, 
I  can't  leave  'ere  ter-night  wivout  tellin'  yer  wot's  in  my 
'eart  abaht  some  of  these  yer  dear  fellers  'ere.  Y'  all 
know  I  ain't  much  of  a  money-earner  at  the  best  er 
times,  an'  therefore  y'  ain't  got  much  differculty  in 
seein'  'at  fings  must  'a'  ben  pretty  bad  for  me  lately. 
We  all  know  wot  it  means  w'en  th'  wife's  laid  up  an' 
th'  ole  man's  outer  work,  don't  we?  Well,  two  dear 
fellers  in  this  'ere  meetin'  'as  kep'  me  an'  my  fam'ly  nah 
fer  abaht  six  weeks.  Yuss,  an'  I  arsks  yer  ter  fank 
Gord  fer  sendin'  on  earf  two  such  men  as  Willie  Maylie 
and  Jemmy  Paterson."  When  the  loud  outburst  of 
appreciation  had  subsided,  Jemmy  resumed  his  address 
for  a  short  time  in  order  to  acquaint  all  his  hearers 
with  the  flourishing  state  of  the  mission  finances,  a 
condition  of  things  which,  he  told  them,  was  almost 
totally  due  to  the  unremitting  energies  of  William 

321 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

Maylie,  who  had  not  only  worked  hard  to  keep  the 
subscriptions  and  donations  up  to  high-water  mark, 
but  had  by  careful  book-keeping  kept  their  accounts 
so  clear  that  a  child  could  understand  them.  And, 
besides  all  this,  he  had  paid  into  the  funds  out  of  his 
own  pocket  a  sum  of  five  shillings  every  week.  Lastly, 
the  speaker  alluded  to  the  statements  made  by  Jenkins, 
the  late  treasurer,  as  to  his  (Jemmy's)  default  in  re- 
spect of  subscriptions.  "  Brevren,"  said  he,  "  I  know- 
I  don't  put  scarcely  nuthin'  into  the  mission  funds.  I 
never  did.  But,  then,  I  ain't  got  it  ter  put  in.  That 
ain't  my  fault;  it's  my  farver's.  Wot  'd  'e  bring  me 
up  t'  chimbley-sweepin'  for?  "  (with  mock  indignation). 
"  I  ain't  let  none  o'  my  boys  go  sweepin'  chimbleys, 
no  fear.  W'y,  wot  wiv  the  price  er  coals,  an'  all  these 
'underds  o'  fousans  ov  penny-in-the-slot  gas-meters, 
they  ain't  scarcely  no  chimbleys  at  all  ter  sweep  nah. 
An'  as  ter  beatin'  carpets,  wot  used  to  be  a  reg'lar  part 
of  ahr  business — most  er  th'  people  I  know  don't  'ave 
none;  they  uses  linogleum.  If  they  does  'ave  a  nice 
bit  er  carpet,  w'y,  they  sen's  it  ter  a  cump'ny,  or  rarver 
the  cump'ny  sen's  an'  fetches  it  in  a  swagger  van  an' 
pair  o'  'orses.  An'  it's  put  in  a  kind  er  washin'  ma- 
sheen,  that  wallops  all  th'  dust  aht  of  it  quicker  'n  you 
can  say  knife.  I  don't  'old  wiv  all  this  'ere  masheenery, 
I  don't.  It'd  be  all  right  if  we  c'd  live  by  masheenery, 
I  s'pose.  But  there,  it's  no  good  grumblin'.  I  never 
fahnd  that  paid,  any'ow.  Let's  sing.  Sister,  play  us 

"  '  Blessed  assurance,  Jesus  is  mine, 
Oh,  what  a  foretaste  of  glory  divine.' " 

So  they  launched  into  song,  and  sang  the  chorus, 
"  This  is  my  story,  this  is  my  song,"  three  times  to 
each  verse  and  five  or  six  times  to  the  last,  and  were 

322 


The  Mission   Prospers 

all  very  much  uplifted  and  happy.  But  as  they  were 
about  to  leave,  just  after  the  benediction  had  been  pro- 
nounced, a  wild-looking  figure  that  had  been  crouch- 
ing in  the  doorway  stood  up  and  shuffled  along  the 
aisle  towards  the  platform.  Paterson  and  Harrop  went 
to  meet  him  and  attend  to  him  in  case  he  should  have 
come  to  make  any  disturbance,  when  the  latter  recog- 
nised him  as  Jimson.  Truly  he  was  a  sad  spectacle. 
Filthy  beyond  expression,  shoeless,  in  scanty  rags 
that  hardly  covered  his  nakedness,  he  was  an  object 
lesson  in  the  highest  sense  on  the  fact  that  the  way 
of  transgressors  is  hard.  The  people  waited  to  see 
"  what  was  up,"  as  they  put  it,  and  presently  the  poor 
wretch  was  allowed  to  mount  the  platform  and  tell 
his  story.  In  effect  it  was  this :  that  although  he  had 
apparently  left  the  mission  through  pique,  it  was  really 
because  he  had  never  actually  had  his  heart  in  it.  He 
loved  to  hold  a  prominent  place  among  his  fellows,  and 
to  pose  as  respectable  because  he  found  it  paid  with 
his  employer,  who  was  a  very  religious  man.  So  he 
had  joined  the  Wren  Lane  band  before  it  possessed  the 
present  Hall,  and  for  a  time  found  himself  looked  up 
to  by  Jemmy  and  taking  the  part  he  loved — viz.,  that 
of  a  prominent  man.  But  when  the  mission  expanded 
he  found  himself,  as  he  put  it,  a  bit  crowded,  and  he 
also  found  the  work  getting  irksome.  So  he  became 
a  backslider,  and  immediately  went  back  to  the  drink. 
Curiously  enough,  before  he  joined  the  mission  he  was 
a  very  moderate  drinker,  but  as  soon  as  he  left  it  he 
became  a  drunkard.  He  went  rapidly  down,  down, 
down.  Now  his  wife  was  dead,  his  children  were  scat- 
tered, and  he  was,  he  hoped,  in  the  last  stages  of  a 
disease  that  would  carry  him  off  very  speedily.  He 
didn't  want  anything,  for  he  was  going  to  the  work- 

323 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

house  infirmary  to  die ;  but  before  he  went  he  wanted 
to  ease  his  mind  by  confessing  to  all  connected  with 
the  mission  that  no  one  was  in  any  way  to  blame  for 
his  going  away  but  himself.  Also,  that  if  any  one  there 
had  a  mind  to  become  a  backslider,  he  would  tell  them 
simply  that  they  would  never  have  any  enjoyment  out 
of  it.  The  devil  was  a  great  promiser,  but  his  per- 
formances were  terrible  to  endure.  He  (the  speaker) 
asked  them  all  to  forgive  him  and  pray  for  him,  and 
he  bade  them  good-bye.  Resisting  all  efforts  to  detain 
him,  he  hobbled  slowly  away,  only  accepting  the  help  of 
poor  old  Woody  to  enable  him  to  reach  the  infirmary. 
They  took  him  in  at  once,  and  in  three  days  he  was 
dead,  having  by  his  last  few  words  made  a  greater  im- 
pression upon  his  hearers  than  ever  he  had  been  able  to 
do  in  his  previous  mission  days — an  impression  that 
will  never  fade  from  some  of  their  minds  while  life  lasts. 
After  the  audience  had  dispersed,  the  brethren  re- 
mained a  little  while  to  discuss  the  mission  affairs  upon 
the  reappearance  of  Jemmy.  All  felt  that  they  had 
deep  cause  for  thankfulness  in  the  steady,  solid  work 
that  was  going  on,  and  the  manner  in  which  they  were 
paying  their  way.  Although  their  numbers  had  never 
since  reached  the  total  which  they  amounted  to  before 
Jackson's  defection,  they  had  a  very  respectable  roll 
of  members — respectable,  that  is,  in  amount  and  stead- 
fastness of  Christian  life,  not  respectable  in  appearance 
as  compared  with  the  ordinary  church  or  chapel-goer, 
by  any  means.  At  the  early  (8  A.  M.)  Sunday  morn- 
ing prayer-meeting  there  was  often  an  attendance  of 
fifty,  and  at  the  breaking  of  bread  usually  half  as  many 
again.  Their  Sunday-school  roll  numbered  nearly 
three  hundred,  and  already  the  accommodation  for  the 
children  was  very  restricted.  But  no  suggestion  of 

324 


The  Mission  Prospers 

enlarging.their  borders  or  launching  out  into  ambitious 
building  schemes  was  mooted,  for  all  felt  that  such 
things  in  their  position  were  better  left  severely  alone. 
As  Jemmy  tersely  put  it :  "  S'  long  's  We're  'umble  th' 
Lord  '11  bless  us ;  w'en  we  git  too  big  for  our  boots  'e'll 
'ave  to  set  erse  back  a  bit  same  's  'e  done  afore.  That 
done  erse  good,  no  doubt,  but  I  don't  want  any  more 
on  it,  thank  yer." 

Mr.  Jackson  had  grown  and  waxed  great,  so  Bill 
Harrop  reported.  He  had  taken  a  large  hall,  seating 
eight  hundred,  at  an  expense  of  nearly  £7  a  week; 
he  had  got  together  a  good-sized  brass  band,  whereof 
every  member  had  the  privilege  of  rinding  his  own 
instrument ;  and  he  was  now  preaching  a  curious  blend 
of  Universalism,  faith-healing,  and  ritualism.  He  had 
left  the  police  force,  donned  a  clerical  garb,  and  had 
cards  printed  with  the  words :  "  Rev.  Thos.  Jackson, 
Peniston  Hall  Gospel  Mission."  He  was  popularly 
supposed  to  be  making  between  £200  and  £300  per  an- 
num. When  Jemmy  heard  this  news  he  said  with  a 
sigh :  "  I  sh'd  like  fine  ter  be  mykin'  free  'underd  a 
year,  an'  I  'opes  I  won't  never  be  tempted  to  make  it 
dis'onest.  But  I  do  know  'at  if  I  wos  offered  right 
'ear  t'  exchange  wiv  Jackson,  I  wouldn't.  'E  must  be 
unhappy  inside,  mustn't  'e  ?  " 

"  Well,  I  don'  know,"  answered  his  father  mus- 
ingly, "  'e  may  be  happier  'n  wot  you  think  for.  'E 
may  believe  'e's  all  right.  Nobody  knows  wot  they 
can  do  in  the  way  of  deceivin'  'emselves  till  they  be- 
gins ter  try.  If  it  wasn't  so  I  don't  know  'ow  we  sh'd 
acahnt  fur  the  many  jolly  people  we  see  aht  of  Christ, 
wivout  any  'ope  fur  th'  fucher,  any  well-grahnded  'ope, 
that  is.  By-the-bye,  changin'  the  subjec'  rarver  quick, 
does  anybody  know  anyfink  er  Saul's  wife  ?  " 

325 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

There  was  a  dead  silence  for  maybe  half  a  minute, 
and  an  uneasy,  guilty  feeling  among  them  quite  un- 
warranted by  an  action  or  want  of  action  of  theirs,  for 
none  of  them  had  known  her  address ;  she  had  volun- 
tarily withdrawn  herself  after  Saul's  departure,  and  in 
this  great  labyrinth  of  London,  more  especially  among 
people  whose  hands  were  as  full  as  these  were,  it  was 
almost  an  impossibility  to  find  a  person  who  had  no 
desire  to  be  found.  But  it  spoke  well  for  the  brethren's 
hearts  that  they  did  feel  like  that.  A  tender  heart  and 
a  sensitive  conscience  is  a  good  thing  to  have,  although 
at  times  an  inconvenient  one  if  its  owner  wants  a  little 
self-indulgence.  At  last  Jemmy  spoke  and  said  :  "  I've 
orfen  thort  abaht  'er,  but  I  didn't  know  wot  'd  become 
of  'er.  I  know  she  didn't  like  erse  very  much ;  I  c'd 
see  that  the  day  we  'eld  the  weddin'  service  'ere.  An' 
I  know  this,  that  arter  Saul  went  she  never  come  near 
the  place  no  more.  I  yeard  somebody  say,  I  dunno  'oo 
it  could  a  ben  nah,  'at  she'd  lef  the  nayburwood.  I 
trust  in  Gord  nuffink's  'appened  to  'er.  Less  'ave  a 
word  o'  pray'r  abaht  'er  afore  we  parts,  shall  we  ?  "  A 
general  assent  being  heartily  given,  all  present  knelt, 
and  Jemmy  prayed :  "  Ho  Gord,  hour  Farther,  w'ich 
is  rite  'ere  ermongst  erse,  we're  trubbled  in  mine  abaht 
ahr  sister,  thy  dear  servant,  Saul's  wife.  'E's  aht  on  the 
great  sea  far  away  from  us,  an'  we  feels  as  if  we  orter 
a  looked  arter  th'  one  dearest  t'  'im  in  th'  worl'.  But 
she  went  away,  Lord,  an'  we  don'  know  w'ere  she  is. 
O  Gord,  you  know.  If  she's  in  trouble,  'elp  'er  aht  ov 
it ;  if  it  may  be,  bring  'er  back  ermong  erse,  an',  any'ow, 
'ave  'er  in  thy  most  'Oly  keepin'.  An'  bless  ahr  dear 
bruvver  Saul  also.  We  don'  know  w'ere  'e  is,  asept 
'at  e's  wiv  you,  Lord.  Watch  hover  'im,  comfort  'im, 
'elp  'im  t'  do  the  work  you've  giv  'im  ter  do,  an'  bring 

326 


The  Mission  Prospers 

'im  safe  back  t'  erse  agen.  An'  nah  please  bless  every 
one  on  us,  Lord.  Bless  my  pore  pardner  'oose  'ad  such 
a  weary  time  o'  sickness.  Grant,  Lord,  'at  the  fiery 
time  of  trial  she's  'ad  may  be  of  the  werry  greatest 
use  t'  'er  an'  me  too.  Bless  us  all,  an'  take  us  t'  ahr 
sev'ral  'omes  in  peace  an'  grateful  love  to  thee,  in  the 
name  of  thy  dear  Son.  Amen." 

There  remained  only  the  good-nights  to  say,  and 
hands  to  be  shaken.  So  they  parted,  and  Jemmy 
hastened  home,  trotting  all  the  way.  When  he  reached 
his  house  he  rushed  upstairs,  to  find  Mrs.  Maskery  sit- 
ting up  in  bed  eating  a  little  beef-tea  brought  her  by 
Sister  Salmon,  who  was  sitting  at  the  other  side  of  the 
bed.  She  welcomed  her  husband  with  a  bright  smile 
and  an  outstretched  hand,  saying  to  Sister  Salmon  as 
she  did  so :  "  Ar !  pore  old  dear,  many  a  night  'e's  come 
'ome  wiv  'is  face  a-smilin'  like  that,  an'  I  just  'ated 
'im  for  bein'  so  'appy.  I  couldn't  be,  and  w'y  sh'd  'e  ? 
So  I  used  ter  go  for  'im  an'  nag  'im  till  I  almost  be- 
lieved 'at  the  fings  I  wos  a-syin'  abaht  'im  an'  to  'im 
was  true.  An'  'e  bore  it  like  a  angel.  That's  wot  I 
fink  made  me  wuss.  If  'e'd  a  'it  me,  or  tole  me  the  real 
trufe  abaht  myself,  I  might  not  a  gone  so  fur.  But  'e 
didn't.  'E  just  useter  go  up  ter  bed  an'  go  to  sleep 
like  a  baby.  An'  that  made  me  wuss  'n  ever.  Wot 
bisness  'ad  'e  ter  sleep  wen  I  couldn't?  Ah,  well,  I 
believe  it's  all  over  nah!  I  fahnd  'im  aht  at  last  ter 
be  the  dearest,  lovin'est,  furgivinest  ole  dear  as  ever 
was,  an'  I  'opes,  Sister  Salmon,  as  you'll  remember  'at 
I  said  so  if  ever  I  sh'd  break  loose  agen." 

Sister  Salmon  had  risen  to  go  when  Jemmy  came 
in,  but  Mrs.  Maskery  held  her  tight  while  she  told 
her  what  was  in  her  heart.  And  as  soon  as  the  poor 
woman  had  finished  speaking,  that  sweet,  saintly  soul 

327 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

just  stooped  and  kissed  the  worn  face  all  wet  with  re- 
pentant tears,  saying  only  "  Good-night,  dear,  an'  God 
bless  ye,  you've  made  me  very  happy."  Then  she  left 
the  room,  Jemmy  holding  the  candle  high  over  the 
banisters  to  light  her  way  down,  and  hastened  off  to 
join  her  faithful  spouse  in  their  own  peaceful  home. 


328 


CHAPTER   XXVIII 

SAUL   COMES    HOME 

WITH  something  of  a  sense  of  dread  at  what  we 
feel  awaits  Saul,  yet  with  a  feeling  of  relief  also  that 
in  front  of  him  still  spreads  a  long,  peaceful  road  over 
which  he  shall  tread  with  firm,  unfaltering  footfall 
before  he  meets  with  the  dread  knowledge  which  shall 
shake  but  not  overthrow  the  firmly  rooted  foundations 
of  his  faith,  we  must  now  return  to  where  he  is  pa- 
tiently doing  his  duty  on  board  the  Colorado  in  Manila 
Harbour.  Even  with  such  a  perfectly  disciplined 
crowd  as  there  was  on  board  of  this  fine  ship,  and  the 
unsleeping  vigilance  of  her  officers,  it  could  not  be 
but  that  in  harbour  occasions  of  disagreement  should 
arise,  and  if  by  any  means  drink  should  become  ob- 
tainable, a  very  slight  matter  originally  might  suddenly 
develop  into  a  condition  of  great  danger  to  all  on 
board.  Thus  it  happened  that  after  a  fortnight's  unin- 
terrupted peace  in  Manila,  during  which  time,  as  the 
shipment  of  the  hemp  only  demanded  six  of  the  ship's 
company,  the  rest  of  the  work  of  stowage  being  done 
by  Filipinos  and  Chinese,  the  whole  ship  was  over- 
hauled and  painted,  there  arose  a  longing  on  the  part 
of  the  majority  of  the  hands  for  a  final  run  ashore  be- 
fore the  long  passage  home  began. 

Now,  Captain  Peck  had  made  a  wise  rule,  for  the 
benefit  of  all  hands,  to  the  effect  that  he  could  be  in- 

329 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

terviewed  every  evening  at  eight  bells,  when  he  was  on 
board,  by  any  member  of  the  ship's  company,  either 
for  complaints  or  requests.  And  this  effectually  pre- 
cluded any  hole-and-corner  work,  since  he  would  not 
listen  to  anything  but  from  the  person  directly  con- 
cerned. So  one  evening  a  huge  Austrian,  deputed  by 
his  comrades,  slouched  aft  at  the  appointed  hour  and 
proffered  the  usual  request  to  the  steward  that  he  might 
see  the  captain.  This  being  granted,  he  asked  for  a 
day's  liberty  on  behalf  of  himself  and  the  crew.  Cap- 
tain Peck  listened  in  patience  until  he  had  finished 
speaking,  then  replied  curtly :  "  Certainly  not.  You'll 
get  leave  finally  in  N'York,  not  before.  Anything 
else  ?  "  The  man  looked  nonplussed  for  a  moment, 
then  muttered  surlily :  "  What  a  for  no  given  leava, 
Capana  ?  Alia  mans  plenta  work  alia  time,  neva  get  a 
drinka,  that  time  fineesh  work  wanta  leetla  drinka." 
He  was,  I  should  have  explained,  from  Trieste. 

For  all  answer  the  captain  pointed  with  his  right 
hand  to  the  fo'csle  and  said  sternly  :  "  Go  forrard.  And 
tell  the  rest  of  your  shipmates  not  to  come  aft  with  any 
such  request  to  me."  The  man  slouched  off,  black 
rage  in  his  heart,  and  as  soon  as  he  reached  the  fo'csle 
began  to  detail  all  sorts  of  imaginary  insults  hurled  at 
him  by  the  skipper.  As  most  of  the  palaver  was  in 
foreign  speech,  which  Saul  did  not  understand,  its  im- 
port troubled  him  not  at  all.  But  during  the  next  few 
days  he  could  not  help  noticing  that  something  was 
afoot  that  seemed  to  menace  the  peace  and  safety  of 
the  whole  ship.  Before  he  had  time  to  realize  what  it 
was  going  to  be  the  storm  burst.  A  large  quantity 
of  liquor  suddenly  made  its  appearance,  and  passed 
freely  from  hand  to  hand,  refused,  of  course,  by  him, 
but  making  him  marvel  mightily  from  whence  it  had 

330 


Saul  Comes  Home 

been  obtained.  Then,  to  his  horror,  he  heard  muttered 
outlines  of  a  plan  to  murder  all  the  officers,  fierce  re- 
callings  of  the  way  in  which,  during  the  early  days  of 
the  voyage,  they  (the  speakers)  had  been  drilled  into 
submissiveness,  and  their  sluggish  intelligences  quick- 
ened by  brutal  application  of  force,  for  all  of  which 
things  they  would  now  exact  the  utmost  reparation. 

Saul's  mind  was  quickly  made  up.  As  a  keen 
watch  was  being  kept  lest  any  one  should  go  aft,  he  lit 
his  pipe  and  strolled  carelessly  up  on  to  the  fo'csle 
head.  There  was  no  one  watching  there,  so  he  slipped 
over  the  head,  down  the  cable,  and  swam  aft  to  the 
accommodation  ladder,  up  which  he  ran,  and  presented 
himself,  breathless,  at  the  door  of  the  mate's  berth. 
That  officer  listened  gravely  to  Saul's  warning,  then, 
disregarding  his  dripping  condition,  led  him  before 
the  skipper,  who  as  quietly  thanked  him  and  offered 
him  a  loaded  revolver.  Saul  refused  the  weapon, 
thanking  the  captain  for  his  confidence,  but  saying  that 
while  he  would  do  all  that  two  honest  fists  could  do  to 
maintain  order,  he  did  not  feel  like  taking  life ;  he 
would  rather  lose  his  own.  The  captain  looked  at  him 
pityingly,  as  one  not  understanding  such  a  condition 
of  mind  at  all,  and  was  just  about  to  discuss  the  matter 
with  him  when  a  patter  of  bare  feet,  a  smothered  oath, 
and  a  crackle  of  revolver  shots  announced  that  the 
threatened  upheaval  had  begun. 

Saul  and  the  captain  rushed  up  the  companion, 
hoping  thereby  to  gain  the  upper  ground  so  as  to  have 
the  advantage  over  their  assailants.  But  they  were  met 
by  the  big  Austrian  and  two  other  men,  who  had 
dodged  past  the  officers  in  the  struggle  on  deck,  hoping 
to  take  them  in  the  rear.  Mattei,  the  Austrian,  flung 
himself  at  the  captain,  his  uplifted  knife  gleaming  in 

331 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

the  moonlight,  and  had  it  not  been  for  Saul  there  is  no 
doubt  the  old  man  would  have  been  slain.  But,  quick 
as  thought,  Saul's  left  arm  flew  across  the  captain's 
breast,  receiving  the  vengeful  downward  stab  right 
through  the  fleshy  part,  while  his  right  fist  shot  out 
like  a  catapult,  taking  Mattei  on  the  point  of  the  chin 
and  breaking  his  jaw.  Down  fell  the  big  man  like 
a  log,  and  across  his  prostrate  body  the  skipper  and 
Saul  fought  shoulder  to  shoulder  against  not  only  the 
two  who  had  accompanied  Mattei,  but  re-enforcements 
that  had  arrived  from  below.  But  no  valour,  however 
fired,  can  make  head  against  firearms  in  the  hands  of 
men  unafraid  to  use  them,  and  in  a  very  few  minutes 
the  discomfited  crew  were  being  driven  "  forrard  "  like 
a  flock  of  sheep,  all  save  the  luckless  ones  who  lay 
groaning  and  bleeding  on  deck. 

Now,  there  have  been  cases  where  such  treatment 
of  men  by  officers  would  have  been  wholly  unjustifi- 
able, where  the  men,  goaded  to  madness  by  ill-treat- 
ment and  overwork,  deserved  all  the  success  in  over- 
coming and  even  slaying  their  persecutors  that  could 
possibly  become  theirs.  But  here  it  was  not  so.  The 
Colorado  was  a  good  ship,  had  been  made  so,  indeed, 
by  the  unremitting  efforts  of  the  officers  at  the  com- 
mencement of  the  voyage,  and  only  a  sudden  upheaval 
of  tigerish  lust,  induced  by  drink,  had  led  to  what  might, 
but  for  the  courage  and  energy  of  Saul,  have  ended 
in  a  most  terrible  tragedy.  When  the  last  of  the 
wounded  had  been  attended  to,  and  all  those  of  the 
crew  who  could  stand  were  perched  aloft  in  various  un- 
comfortable positions,  Captain  Peck  and  his  chief  offi- 
cer interviewed  Saul  and  decided  that  he  must  be  the 
bo'sun — that  is,  if  he  would  accept  the  office.  His 
wages  were  at  once  increased  by  ten  dollars  per  month, 

332 


Saul  Comes  Home 

and  he  was  given  plenary  powers  of  dealing  with  any 
man  who  should  perchance  meditate  revenge. 

Saul,  however,  was  no  coward,  and,  moreover,  he 
had  so  pleasant  a  way  with  him  that  it  was  almost  im- 
possible for  a  man  to  be  under  his  orders  and  not  come 
to  like  him.  And  when  that  motley  crowd  realized 
what  a  splendid  specimen  of  mankind  they  had  got 
over  them;  when  they  found  how  utterly  incapable  he 
was  of  bearing  malice,  or  of  abusing  his  position  in 
order  to  pay  them  out  for  what  they  had  done,  they 
altered  their  bearings  towards  him,  and  no  longer 
thought,  as  at  first  they  did,  of  stabbing  him  in  the 
back  and  dumping  him  overboard  the  first  chance  they 
got.  They  grew  to  love  him  as  well  as  admire  him, 
and  before  they  were  round  the  Cape  he  could  do 
anything  with  them ;  it  was  admitted  by  all  the  officers 
that  a  smarter  crew  or  a  better  bo'sun  it  would  be 
almost  impossible  to  find. 

Thus  it  came  to  pass  that  in  solemn  conclave  with 
his  officers  Captain  Peck  thus  delivered  himself :  "  Gen- 
tlemen, in  common  with  most  American  seamen  I've 
hitherto  held  a  mighty  poor  opinion  of  the  so-called 
superiority  of  the  British  sailor  over  every  other  mari- 
ner that  ever  was.  And  I  hold  still  that  while  he  cer- 
tainly is  reliable  when  good,  his  smartness  requires 
considerable  freshening  up  before  it  reaches  our  stand- 
ard. As  a  general  rule  his  motto  is  '  Go  slow,'  however 
good  a  man  he  may  be.  But  here  we've  got  a  man 
who  is  not  only  the  best  all-round  sailorman  I've  ever 
clapped  eyes  on  in  all  my  fishing,  but  is,  in  addition 
to  that,  the  spryest  man  I've  ever  had  under  my  com- 
mand. You  can't  get  him  rattled.  The  hotter  the 
pace,  the  cooler  he  seems  to  be,  and  the  very  tones 
of  his  voice  seem  to  give  men  confidence  that  all  is 

333 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

going  right.  Now,  I've  got  a  theory  about  this  man. 
I  believe  he's  a  Christian  of  the  highest  stamp — one  of 
the  kind  sent  us  occasionally  to  show  what  Christianity 
can  make  of  a  man  if  he'll  only  let  it  have  a  fair  show. 
I've  never  heard  him  utter  a  swear-word,  I've  never 
seen  hifn  out  of  temper,  and  yet  if  you  notice  there's 
a  look  in  his  face  as  of  a  man  that's  bowed  down  with 
very  great  sorrow.  I'm  afraid  we  shall  lose  him  in 
N' York ;  I'm  sure  that  he'll  be  off  East  as  quick's  ever 
he  can  get,  but  I'd  give  big  money  to  keep  him." 

The  skipper  having  thus  eased  his  mind,  the  mate 
modestly  took  up  the  conversation  by  saying :  "  You're 
perfectly  right,  sir,  in  all  you  say.  The  man  is  a 
Christian.  I've  surprised  him  on  his  knees.  An'  I've 
noticed  that  although  he  reads  considerable,  the  Bible's 
more  often  in  his  hands  than  any  other  book.  Another 
thing,  whenever  he's  been  below  a  little  while  by  him- 
self, he  always  comes  on  deck  again  with  his  face  all 
a-shine  as  if  he'd  been  having  such  a  bully  time  that 
the  reflection  of  it  on  his  face  wouldn't  die  away.  Now, 
with  me  that  ain't  so.  When  I'm  turned  out  to  my 
duty  I  always  have  to  just  shake  myself  back  to  work 
again,  an'  I  feel  as  sulky  as  a  starvin'  grizzly."  Mur- 
murs of  assent  from  skipper  and  second  mate.  "  Yes, 
sir,"  the  mate  went  on,  "  I'd  give  big  money  if  only  I 
knew  the  secret  of  this  Britisher's  content." 

The  Colorado  made  a  wonderful  passage  home, 
and  came  into  port  looking  like  a  new  pin,  to  the  deep, 
measureless  satisfaction  of  her  officers,  to  whom  the 
comments  made  by  the  pilot  and  subsequent  visitors 
were  as  sweetest  incense  in  their  nostrils.  As  the  ship 
was  towing  up  the  East  River,  the  captain  sent  for  Saul, 
and  told  him  that  if  he  would  only  stay  with  him  in  the 
ship  he  should  be  kept  on  full  pay  while  in  harbour, 

'  334 


Saul  Comes  Home 

and  anything  in  reason  in  the  way  of  wages  should  be 
his  for  the  next  voyage  that  he  liked  to  ask  for.  More- 
over, he  (the  captain)  would  make  it  his  special  care  to 
teach  Saul  navigation,  so  as  to  fit  him  for  taking  the 
post  that  he  so  richly  deserved,  and  for  which  he  was  so 
pre-eminently  fitted.  But  even  as  he  talked,  the  cap- 
tain could  see  that  all  his  kindly  efforts  would  be  in 
vain.  The  man  before  him  had  his  face  steadfastly 
set  in  one  direction,  from  which  nothing  earthly  that  he 
could  overcome  would  turn  it.  And  when  the  cap- 
tain had  finished,  Saul  answered  him,  saying :  "  Cap- 
tain Peck,  you've  done  me  a  great  deal  of  honour 
talkin'  to  me  as  you  have.  I've  only  done  what  I 
ought,  but  I  shouldn't  ha'  been  able  to  do  it  but  for 
the  continual  help  of  God,  given  to  me  without  any 
deserving  of  my  own  except  a  deep  sense  of  my  utter 
helplessness  'athout  it.  But  I  can't  help  feelin'  too, 
sir,  that  I  haven't  been  faithful  as  I  ought  to  have  been 
aboard  here.  I  'aven't  preached  as  well  as  practised. 
By  the  help  of  God  I  'ave  practised  Christianity,  but 
somehow  I  'aven't  felt  able  to  do  as  I  did  on  board 
the  last  ship  I  made  a  voy'ge  in  as  bo'sun.  An'  it 
weighs  on  my  'art  very  heavy,  I  assure  you.  As  to 
your  offer,  sir,  I  can't  accept  it,  anyhow.  I  was  just 
married  before  I  came  away.  I  was  wrecked  only  a 
few  days  out  of  port,  picked  up  and  carried  off  to 
China.  An'  I've  never  heard  of  her  since,  and  don't 
know  whether  she's  heard  of  me  or  not,  although,  of 
course,  I've  sent  on  all  the  money  I  could  get  to  her 
from  Hong-Kong.  But,"  and  here  the  poor  fellow's 
eyes  shone  with  entreaty,  "  do  please  let  me  know  as 
soon  as  you  can  whether  there's  a  letter  waitin'  here  for 
me.  Excuse  me  troublin'  you,  sir,  but  I  am  almost 
sick  with  anxiety,  and  I  have  to  keep  on  prayin'  to 

335 


God  to  keep  me  from  worryin'  myself  into  another 
brain  fever." 

"  My  dear  fellow,"  answered  the  skipper,  hard  put 
to  it  to  keep  the  tears  from  his  eyes,  "  count  on  me  to 
do  all  I  can  for  you.  I'll  not  say  another  word  about 
your  coming  with  me ;  your  duty's  at  home,  and  to  get 
there  with  all  possible  speed.  And  as  for  your  letter, 
I'll  do  all  I  can  to  get  it  off  to  you  at  once.  I'll  send 
a  special  messenger  with  it  if  it's  there."  Sure  enough 
or  ever  the  ship  was  secured,  a  messenger  brought  Saul 
a  letter  which  had  been  lying  in  the  owner's  office  for 
two  months.  Happily,  it  arrived  only  a  few  minutes 
before  he  was  free  to  go  and  devour  its  contents; 
happily,  because  he  was  so  violently  agitated  that  his 
knees  smote  together  and  the  ganglions  at  the  pit  of 
his  breastbone  felt  as  if  a  ruthless  hand  was  wrenching 
them  round  and  round. 

"  My  dear  husband  "  (it  ran)  "  I  write  these  few 
lines  hoping  they  will  find  you  quite  well  as  I  am  happy 
to  say  it  leaves  me  at  present.  I  have  been  verry  ill 
and  very  pore,  for  Carry  turned  me  out  almost  as 
soon  as  you  was  gone.  If  it  had  not  been  for  the 
Doctor  I  should  have  died  and  perhaps  it  would  have 
been  a  good  job.  I  thought  you  had  got  tired  of  me 
and  gone  away  for  good,  for  I  have  heard  that  a  sailor 
has  a  wife  in  every  port,  and  wnen  the  months  went 
by  and  I  heard  nothing  of  you  I  felt  shore  I  should 
never  have  seen  you  again.  When  I  went  up  for  the 
second  half-pay  they  told  me  at  the  office  that  the  ship 
was  recked  and  I  shouldn't  get  any  more  money  I 
fainted  in  the  office.  But  they  didn't  give  me  nothin' 
an'  I  was  out  of  work  and  rent  was  owin'.  And  I  was 
livin'  all  by  myself  in  a  room  at  Islinton  where  I 
didn't  know  nobody  though  there  was  lots  of  lodgers 

336 


Saul  Comes  Home 

in  the  place  and  how  I  lived  I  can't  tell  you.  Then 
one  day,  oh  months  after,  I  thought  I'd  go  and  see 
Carrie  and  she  had  a  letter  for  me  from  you  with 
four  pounds  in  it  and  oh  it  was  a  godsend.  I'd 
pawned  almost  everything  but  what  I  stood  up- 
right in  to  get  food  and  pay  rent  for  work's  been 
awful  in  London  since  you  been  away  I've  been  ma- 
chinist in  quite  a  smart  dressmakers  at  ten  shillin'  a 
week  and  bullied  to  death  almost  at  that.  You  never 
told  me  ware  to  write  to  in  that  first  letter  but  I  give 
Carrie  my  adress  she  was  that  horrified  to  see  how 
ill  I  was  looking  and  she  sent  me  on  another  letter 
about  a  month  after  with  about  four  pounds  and  I 
thinks  thinks  I  things  is  lookin'  up  with  him  he's 
remembered  me  at  last.  Then  you  give  me  a  adress  and 
I  set  down  and  wrote  this  letter  and  I'm  livin'  now 

at  14  Bertha  Street  Upper  Street  Islinton.    Now " 

But  I  must  not  give  any  more  of  this  letter.  In  any 
case,  the  latter  half  is  sacredly  private,  as  well  as  quite 
outside  the  pale  of  the  story.  Poor  Saul,  who  had 
never  had  but  one  letter  before  in  his  life,  did  not 
know  what  to  make  of  it.  He  read  and  re-read  it  until 
his  eyes  burned  in  their  sockets,  but  the  more  he  read 
it  the  less  satisfactory  did  it  seem.  At  last,  with  a  deep- 
drawn  sigh  he  folded  it  up  and  put  it  away,  and  sprang 
into  violent  energy,  packing  his  belongings  for  shore. 
The  mate  came  and  found  him  thus  employed,  and 
begged  him  as  a  special  favour  to  stay  on  board  that 
evening  and  talk  with  him,  pointing  out  that  in  any 
case  he  could  not  go  home  until  the  ship  was  paid  off, 
and  he  would  be  far  better  off  aboard  than  ashore. 
Saul  consented  willingly,  only  stipulating  that  he 
should  go  and  ascertain  when  the  first  steamer  left  for 
London.  Having  found  that  there  was  one  going  in 

337 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

two  days'  time,  and  securing  a  steerage  passage  in  her, 
Saul  came  back  and  was  at  once  invited  by  the  mate 
into  his  berth. 

When  two  men  get  together  like  Saul  and  Mr.  Fish 
the  relations  that  have  subsisted  between  them  take 
some  little  time  to  get  broken  down  and  a  condition  of 
equality  set  up.  But  the  mate  was  most  pathetically 
eager  to  learn  the  secret  of  Saul's  efficient  happiness, 
and  Saul  was  equally  eager  to  tell  it,  so  that  in  far  less 
time  than  usual  they  came  to  closest  quarters  over  the 
one  eternal  question  of  man's  salvation.  Here,  how- 
ever, all  the  conditions  were  favourable.  Tested  to  the 
utmost,  Saul's  Christianity  had  proved  its  value,  so  that 
all  he  said  came  with  tremendous  force.  He  was  no 
mere  theorist  or  hireling,  who  did  not  believe  prac- 
tically one  of  the  truths  he  was  enunciating.  Nor 
was  he  actuated  by  any  other  motive  than  that  inspired 
by  the  great  Friend  of  man,  the  making  of  another 
man  into  a  more  perfect  pattern  of  what  a  man  should 
really  be,  the  image  of  God,  for  his  own  greater  hap- 
piness and  the  eternal  benefit  of  those  with  whom  he 
should  come  in  contact. 

Before  they  parted  for  the  night  Mr.  Fish  had 
stepped  out  of  his  old  self,  had  thrown  in  his  lot  with 
the  people  of  God,  and  had  become  a  worthy  disciple 
of  the  greatest,  bravest,  happiest  man  that  e.ver  lived. 
And  Saul,  in  spite  of  his  gnawing  desire  to  get  home, 
was  comforted.  It  is  indeed  a  consolation  to  know  that 
we  are  not  standing  all  the  day  idle,  but  that  wher- 
ever we  are,  however  long  we  may  have  to  wait  be- 
tween employments,  we  may  redeem  the  time  to  our 
soul's  intense  satisfaction  and  the  benefit  of  some  poor 
soul  for  whose  behoof  that  spare  time  was  allowed  us. 

Wednesday  morning  saw  Saul  on  the  deck  of  one 

338 


Saul  Comes  Home 

of  the  liners  homeward  bound,  his  passage  having  been 
paid  by  the  grateful  captain,  who  never  could  forget 
that  but  for  Saul  he  would  have  died  in  Manila.  More- 
over, there  had  mysteriously  appeared  in  the  handful 
of  bills  the  skipper  handed  Saul  as  his  pay  one  for  a 
hundred  dollars,  which  seemed  to  Saul  to  have  got 
there  in  error.  When  he  pointed  this  out  the  skipper 
curtly  told  him  that  the  money  was  all  right ;  he  never 
made  any  mistakes  in  money  matters.  And  Saul's 
keen  wit  saw  at  once  that  this  was  just  a  kindly,  un- 
strained way  of  making  up  to  him  his  great  loss.  He 
was  very  grateful,  feeling  almost  guilty  at  leaving  so 
splendid  an  opening  for  good;  but  nevertheless  his 
heart  was  like  a  hound  straining  at  the  leash.  Oh,  but 
he  was  eager  to  be  gone !  His  ship  steamed  eighteen 
knots,  very  much  faster  than  he  had  ever  travelled  in 
his  life  before,  but  to  him  she  seemed  to  crawl.  Nor 
did  all  the  many  ways  in  which  he  contrived  to  make 
himself  useful  on  board  do  much  to  shorten  the  time 
for  him.  The  last  day  seemed  a  month  long. 

It  was  over  at  last,  and  sobered  down  now  at  the 
nearness  of  the  realization  of  his  long-deferred  hopes, 
he  ordered  a  cab  and  drove  to  the  address  his  wife  had 
given  him — 4  A.  M.  on  a  bleak  morning  in  Febru- 
ary, but  to  him  it  might  have  been  the  balmiest  day  in 
June  for  all  the  heed  he  took  to  the  weather.  The  cab 
drew  up  at  the  door,  and  as  luck  would  have  it,  to 
speak  popularly,  just  as  Saul  was  about  to  knock  the 
door  was  opened,  and  out  came  a  railway  guard  going 
down  to  join  his  train.  He  stared  at  Saul  wonderingly 
as  he  courteously  gave  him  good-morning  and  asked 
if  he  was  right  in  assuming  that  Mrs.  Andrews  lived 
here.  "  Yes ;  second  floor  back,"  replied  the  guard, 
and  was  gone,  for  he  had  no  time  to  waste  in  conversa- 

339 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

tion.  It  was  enough.  Bearing  his  chest  as  if  it  had 
been  a  bandbox,  Saul  stepped  lightly  up  the  stairs, 
tapped  at  the  door,  and  whispered :  "  It's  me,  dear." 

"  Come  in,"  said  a  faint  voice,  and  he  entered,  to 
find  her  he  sought  well  and  strong.  .  .  . 

The  misery  of  that  room — nothing  in  it  but  the 
barest  necessaries — troubled  him  not  at  all.  Like  a  boy 
he  bounded  downstairs,  gave  the  cabman  a  sovereign, 
and  returned,  springing  like  a  young  hart  upon  the 
mountains  of  Bether. 

There  was  much  to  tell  on  both  sides,  but  whereas 
he  had  no  reservations,  all  that  was  in  his  heart  came 
forth  as  crystal  clear,  so  happy  was  he  in  being  able 
to  tell  all  his  adventures,  his  hopes  and  fears,  his  long 
waiting  in  utter  ignorance  of  what  had  befallen  his  dear 
one.  But  she — who  ever  realized  what  vultures  were 
tearing  at  her  heart?  Looking  at  this  fine,  whole- 
souled,  stalwart  man,  her  husband,  in  all  his  glowing 
faithfulness  and  utter  forgetfulness  of  self,  she  must 
have  longed  with  a  perfectly  frantic  desire  to  tell  him 
all,  and  ask  him  to  forgive  her.  But  she  strangled  the 
desire,  and  instead,  when  her  turn  came  to  tell  of  her 
experiences,  with  native  art  she  drew  such  moving  pic- 
tures of  her  loneliness,  of  her  utter  helplessness,  of  her 
nearness  to  starvation  in  the  midst  of  mountainous 
plenty,  that  at  last  Saul  was  fain  to  implore  her  to  spare 
him.  As  he  truly  said,  he  could  not  see  how  he  was  to 
blame  in  any  way  except  in  marrying  at  all,  yet  he 
could  not  help  feeling  that  he  was.  But  he  could  not 
help  asking,  why  didn't  she  go  or  send  to  the  mission 
friends.  Then,  feeling  that  she  had  no  real  reason  to 
offer,  she  did  what  so  many  unrighteously  do — to  cover 
her  own  misdoing — she  accused  innocent  people.  All 
the  ribald  gossip  of  the  streets  she  reproduced  as  if  it 

340 


Saul  Comes  Home 

were  attested  evidence,  and,  not  content  with  that,  she 
suggested  falsehoods  and  suppressed  truths  until  Saul, 
grieved  beyond  measure,  sat  and  wondered  what  man- 
ner of  woman  it  was  that  he  had  linked  his  life  to. 

Presently  he  said :  "  Well,  Lizzie,  dear,  I'm  terrible 
sorry  to  hear  you  talk  like  that,  because  I  know  you 
are  saying  what  isn't  true,  although  I  don't  believe 
you  know  it.  Don't,  don't  for  Heaven's  sake  say  such 
things  unless  you  know  they  are  true.  You  don't  know 
what  harm  you  may  do,  not  only  to  the  people  you  are 
talking  about,  but  to  others  who  trust  them  and  to 
those  who  hate  them  also.  Lizzie,  dear,  let's  kneel 
down  and  ask  God  to  keep  us  just  and  true  to  him  and 
all  his  servants."  But  she  would  not.  She  said  he 
thought  more  of  the  dirty  old  mission  lot  than  he 
thought  of  her,  and  much  more  in  the  same  strain, 
which  it  would  be  painful  to  repeat,  and  I  fear  useless 
also.  However,  its  effect  upon  Saul  was  very  serious. 
He  went  out  after  breakfast  an  altered  man.  He  saw 
a  cross  ready  for  his  bearing  that  he  shrank  from,  but 
to  his  honour  be  it  said  he  determined  to  take  it  up, 
in  all  confidence  that  sooner  or  later  it  would  be  the 
great  blessing  to  him  that  every  other  trial  had  been 
since  he  had  known  the  Lord. 

It  was  his  intention  to  go  down  to  Rotherhithe  and 
see  Jemmy  at  once,  but  before  he  had  been  out  of  the 
house  ten  minutes  his  heart  smote  him  for  leaving  his 
wife,  who  had  been  left  so  long,  and  he  returned,  say- 
ing brightly,  as  if  nothing  had  happened :  "  Wouldn't 
you  like  to  have  a  little  outing,  dear,  this  fine  bright 
day?  Let's  come  and  do  some  shopping."  Oh,  wise 
sailor!  His  invitation  was  irresistible,  for  his  poor 
wife  really  was  badly  in  want  of  clothes,  and  it  was  so 
long  since  she  had  been  in  the  possession  of  any  money 

341 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

to  spend  on  what  was  not  bitterly  necessary.  So  she 
brightened  up,  made  the  best  she  could  of  her  ap- 
pearance (and  it  is  truly  wonderful  what  some  young 
women  can  do  with  very  little  in  the  way  of  clothing), 
and  presently  they  both  went  out,  the  passing  cloud 
having  apparently  quite  disappeared.  It  had  not 
though.  It  loomed  heavy  and  threatening  in  the  back- 
ground of  Saul's  mind,  despite  his  heroic  efforts  to 
disperse  it,  while  in  her  poor,  troubled  breast  there 
was  such  a  terrible  commotion  that  it  threatened  at 
times  to  make  her,  bursting  into  a  fit  of  hysterics,  con- 
fess not  merely  the  evil  she  had  done,  but  all  she  had 
contemplated. 


342 


CHAPTER  XXIX 

AND    LAST 

OF  course,  any  reader  who  has  followed  my  story 
thus  far  will  fully  understand  that  it  was  perfectly  un- 
thinkable that  Saul  should  remain  for  any  length  of 
time  away  from  the  mission.  Much  as  he  loved  his  wife, 
he  was  quite  shrewd  enough  to  see  that  her  jealous 
aversion  to  the  mission  was  a  bad  thing  for  him  to 
defer  to,  and  he  did  not  for  one  moment  propose  to 
himself  the  possibility  of  his  doing  so.  Therefore,  one 
of  his  earliest  visits  paid  alone  was  to  the  place  of  his 
soul's  birth,  to  the  people  whom  he  loved.  He  was 
sorely  tempted  to  conceal  his  destination  when  he  set 
out,  feeling  certain  that  his  wife  would  not  only  disap- 
prove, but  would  show  her  disapprobation  strongly. 
But  he  was  not  the  man  to  be  overcome  by  such  a 
temptation  as  that,  and  so  he  said :  "  Lizzie,  dear,  I'm 
a-goin'  down  to  the  mission  this  evenin'.  Wouldn't 
you  like  to  come  ?  " 

"  I  wonder  how  you  can  ask  me,"  she  replied  tartly. 
"  You  know  I  don't  hold  with  their  rantin',  hypocriti- 
cal ways.  But  you  go  if  you  like.  Never  mind  about 
me.  You've  only  been  home  five  minutes,  and  you're 
wantin'  to  get  out  of  my  reach  an'  back  t'  your  mission 
again.  People  like  you've  no  business  t'  get  married ; 
you're  too  fond  o'  gaddin'  about  an'  hearin'  yourselves 
talk " 

23  343 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

Why  proceed  further  with  the  poor  tortured 
woman's  reproaches.  She  knew  that  she  had  no  cause 
of  complaint;  she  was  quite  aware  that  her  animadver- 
sions upon  the  mission  folks  were  utterly  unfounded. 
But  beneath  all  was  the  consciousness  of  a  moral  con- 
dition that,  until  her  heart  was  cleansed,  rendered  her 
quite  unfit  for  the  company  of  Christians.  And  that 
consciousness,  in  order  to  obtain  some  relief  from  the 
never-ceasing  gnaw  of  remorse,  drove  her  to  these  wild 
and  bitter  words.  Drove  her,  too,  to  hunting  her  hus- 
band about  worse  than  even  Mrs.  Maskery  had  done. 
Made  her  nag  him  incessantly  while  he  was  at  home, 
and  then,  after  shadowing  him  at  the  meetings  as  long 
as  she  could  do  so  unobserved,  she  hurried  home  and 
awaited  his  return,  when,  by  every  means  that  a  fertile 
brain  could  devise  and  a  fluent  tongue  put  in  action, 
she  endeavoured  to  wring  from  the  harassed  man  an 
angry  word.  When  she  succeeded  (and  as  the  days 
wore  on  she  succeeded,  alas !  only  too  often)  she  felt  a 
perfectly  diabolic  combination  of  delight  and  remorse 
that  it  is  not  possible  to  explain,  but  that  every  one 
who  has  ever  suffered  in  this  way  will  immediately 
recognise. 

Meanwhile,  unknown  to  her,  Saul  had  been  striv- 
ing with  all  his  heart  and  soul  to  obtain  work  ashore. 
Many  will  think  that,  having  obtained  such  an  insight 
into  the  life  he  was  likely  to  lead  with  his  wife  if  he 
persisted  in  following  his  Master  in  the  way  he  felt 
led  to,  he  would  have  been  anxious  to  get  to  sea 
again.  Besides,  he  was  never  a  man  who  hated  his 
career,  as  do  the  majority  of  seafarers  until  they  get 
supreme  command.  But  no,  he  was  so  perfectly  satu- 
rated with  the  desire  for  justice  that  it  had  become  the 
strongest  need  of  his  life.  And  he  felt  that  it  was 

344 


And  Last 

such  a  terrible  injustice  to  subject  his  wife  again  to  the 
chance  of  what  she  had  already  undergone  (although 
its  full  significance  was  mercifully  hidden  from  him) 
that  he  left  no  stone  unturned  in  his  efforts  to  obtain 
a  shore  berth.  Day  by  day  his  money  dwindled,  and 
fainter,  apparently,  became  his  prospects  of  attaining 
his  object.  But  he  prayed  continuously,  and  had  strong 
assurance  that  he  was  to  be  answered  in  the  way  he 
desired. 

At  last,  when  his  stock  of  cash  had  dwindled  to  a 
solitary  pound,  he  met  one  day  in  the  West  India  Dock 
Road  with  his  old  skipper,  Captain  Vaughan.  Their 
greeting  was  most  cordial,  and  turning  into  the  cap- 
tain's house,  which  was  close  at  hand,  they  enjoyed  a 
long,  long  exchange  of  experiences  since  last  they 
had  parted.  And  presently  it  came  out  that  Captain 
Vaughan  had  retired  from  the  sea,  and  was  now  the 
overlooker  of  a  line  of  ships.  When  Saul  told  him 
of  his  earnest  wish  to  get  a  job  ashore  he  was  at  first 
disinclined  to  further  Saul's  wishes,  alleging  as  his 
reason  that  such  a  man  as  Saul  ought  to  remain  at  sea 
in  view  of  the  good  that  he  could  do  there,  far  more 
in  proportion  than  he  could  do  ashore ;  for  Captain 
Vaughan  was  convinced  of  the  fundamental  truth  that 
the  place  to  missionize  Jack  successfully  is  at  sea.  But 
it  is  quite  impossible  to  do  this  in  the  merchant  ser- 
vice unless  you  can  persuade  converted  sailors  to  con- 
tinue their  career  in  the  fo'csle.  It  seems  hard  that  this 
should  be  so,  but  men  have  made,  men  do  make,  simi- 
lar sacrifices  for  God  every  day,  and  that  without  any 
trumpeting  of  their  deeds  abroad.  However,  when 
Captain  Vaughan  heard  Saul's  side  of  the  matter,  and 
considered  it  fully,  he  altered  his  mind  as  far  as  Saul 
was  concerned,  and  almost  immediately  got  him  a 

345 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

* 

berth  as  a  foreman  rigger,  a  post  he  was  eminently 
qualified  to  fill. 

Saul  went  home  quietly,  feeling  glad  indeed  that  he 
had  been  answered  by  God,  although  his  gladness  was 
of  a  sober  quality,  since  he  could  not  help  feeling  that 
now  the  real  battle  of  life  was  about  to  begin  for  him. 
When  he  told  his  wife  she  was  almost  delirious  with 
delight.  It  would  be  impossible,  though,  to  analyze 
her  feelings.  She  herself  could  no  more  have  done  so 
than  fly.  But  undoubtedly  the  uppermost  sensation 
was  genuine  gladness  that  she  would  not  again  be 
exposed  to  the  vicissitudes  of  a  lonely  life  in  London. 
She  promised  herself  that  she  would  be  very  good  to 
him ;  that  in  all  possible  ways  she  would  endeavour  to 
atone  for  the  wrong  she  had  done  him ;  but  she  made  a 
mental  reservation  that  she  would  not,  could  not,  go 
with  him  to  the  mission.  She  had  nourished  that  un- 
reasonable dislike  of  hers  to  the  mission  people  until 
it  was  something  not  far  removed  from  hatred,  and  the 
fact  that  it  was  unreasonable,  that  it  had  no  basis  what- 
ever, was,  I  dare  say,  one  cause  of  its  fierceness. 

Saul  soon  settled  down  to  shore  life,  for  sailors  are 
the  most  adaptable  of  men.  His  help,  now  regularly 
given,  at  the  mission,  was  a  most  blessed  boon  to  them. 
Thrice  on  a  Sunday  and  twice  in  the  week  he  gave  up 
an  hour  or  so  to  the  work  of  God  among  them,  and 
all  the  rest  of  his  time  he  spent  at  home  when  not  at 
work.  Also  out  of  his  wages,  which  averaged  forty- 
five  shillings  weekly,  he  set  aside  five  shillings  for  the 
mission.  They  were  now  indeed  a  stalwart  band,  doing 
a  splendid  work  in  the  midst  of  their  own  people,  a 
work  that  certainly  could  not  have  been  done  so  well 
by  any  other  organization  whatever.  And  any  one  of 
the  principal  workers  was  a  host  in  himself.  Jemmy, 

346 


And  Last 

mellowing  from  day  to  day  under  the  sunny  atmos- 
phere of  his  transformed  home  life,  \vas  noticeably  less 
insistent  upon  the  eternal  damnation  of  literal  fire 
awaiting  those  who  did  not  come  to  Jesus  while  here 
below.  He  gave  his  loving  humanity  a  chance,  and 
began  dimly  to  recognise  the  great  fact  of  the  pre- 
eminence of  love  over  fear.  This  reacted  healthily 
also  upon  his  treatment  of  those  Christians  who  dif- 
fered from  him  on  minor  points  of  doctrine,  softened 
the  asperities  that  often  disfigure  the  character  of  the 
most  godly  men  when  discussing  the  things  that  do 
not  matter.  Brother  and  Sister  Salmon  remained,  as 
they  always  had  been,  the  peaceful  light-shedders  of 
the  little  band,  looked  up  to  and  most  tenderly  loved 
by  all  the  rest.  Skipper  Stevens  and  Peter  Burn  also 
remained  as  they  were,  in  spite  of  the  almost  univer- 
sally held  idea  that  in  the  Christian  life  there  is  no 
such  possibility ;  that  Christians  must  either  advance 
or  recede.  I  do  not  propose  to  argue  this  question, 
but  if  this  be  true,  how  do  we  account  for  the  very  large 
number  of  church-members  familiar  to  us  all  who  are 
always  in  their  places,  always  ready  with  their  con- 
tributions, always  leading  on  week-days  lives  of  purity, 
peace,  and  unspottedness  from  the  world?  Unambi- 
tious to  occupy  office  of  any  kind,  they  greatly  prefer  to 
form  part  of  the  rank  and  file,  to  march  with  the  com- 
mon soldiery  and  do  their  duty  humbly.  Without  any 
paltering  with  words,  must  we  not  admit  that  these 
Christians  are  as  stationary  in  their  spiritual  career  as 
is  the  good  and  faithful  servant  in  business  who,  hav- 
ing attained  a  certain  level,  maintains  it  all  his  life, 
doing  his  duty  faithfully  as  long  as  he  is  able,  and  then 
regretfully  retiring  from  his  well-beloved  work  to  his 
well-earned  rest?  I  think  so,  and  I  believe  that  every 

347 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

pastor  who  is  truly  a  shepherd  is  grateful  for  the  knowl- 
edge that  his  congregation  comprises  some  of  these 
rooted  and  grounded  ones. 

But  Maylie,  Paterson,  and  Harrop  were  the  won- 
ders of  the  place.  Their  gifts  were  so  very  remarkable, 
their  power  over  the  people  among  whom  they  lived 
and  worked  so  great,  that  it  was  no  wonder  overtures 
were  again  and  again  made  to  them  to  get  them  away 
into  larger  spheres  of  work.  Again  and  again  they 
were  told  that  they  were  burying  their  talent  in  the 
earth,  that  they  were  wasting  golden  opportunities,  and 
so  forth.  No  such  arguments  moved  them  one  jot. 
And  without  attempting  to  decide  whether  they  were 
right  or  not,  I  cannot  but  admire  their  simple  loyalty 
to  Jemmy,  their  loving  forbearance  with  his  undoubted 
limitations,  their  own  humbleness,  which  felt  that  its 
proper  sphere  was  the  little  lowly  mission  where  the 
Lord  had  found  them,  and  where,  untrammelled  by 
the  too-often  hampering  concomitants  of  belonging  to 
a  great  society,  they  had  been  the  glad  instruments  of 
so  much  real  good.  Maylie,  especially,  although  he 
was  rising  steadily  to  the  head  of  affairs  in  the  great 
firm  where  he  earned  his  bread,  and  was  now  in  a  posi- 
tion that  would  have  made  him  a  decided  acquisition 
to  the  roll  of  officers  of  any  great  church,  treated  any 
suggestion  that  he  should  go  up  higher  in  the  world 
of  Christian  work  as  a  joke.  He  would  quietly  say 
to  any  of  his  friends  outside  when  they  in  all  serious- 
ness remonstrated  with  him  for  still  remaining  in  such 
a  company :  "  It's  not  of  the  slightest  use  talking  to 
me.  I  could  not  be  happy  anywhere  else.  I  believe 
that  the  work  God  has  given  me  to  do  here  is  exactly 
what  I'm  fit  for.  I  feel  as  if  nobody  could  do  it  better 
than  I  can.  And  I  feel,  too,  that  it  is  a  good  thing  in 

348 


And  Last 

Christian  work  to  keep  low  down.  The  work  of  God 
has  never  been  better  done  than  it  was  by  the  apostles  ; 
and  goodness  knows,  as  far  as  externals  went,  they 
were  so  low  down  that  they  couldn't  get  any  lower — 
right  down  on  the  ground.  No,  put  me  up  a  bit,  rriake 
me  an  office-holder  in  some  big  church,  and  I'm  afraid 
I  should  get  full  of  sinful  pride ;  anyhow,  I'm  not 
going  to  run  into  temptation  of  that  sort  if  I  can  pos- 
sibly avoid  it.  I'll  stick  to  the  old  mission  until  God 
himself  shifts  me  out  of  it." 

Pug  and  Jack  Maskery  still  maintained  their  free- 
lance connection  with  the  mission,  Pug  being  excep- 
tionally happy  and  contented  there,  especially  as  the 
boy  whom  he  had  rescued  from  the  prison-gate  had 
turned  out  all  right,  and  a  great  comfort  to  him  in  his 
fast-increasing  decrepitude.  He  had  got  the  lad  into 
a  large  shop  close  by  the  court  in  which  they  had 
lived,  where  he  was  always  handy,  where  his  hours 
were  good,  and  he  was  greatly  esteemed.  And  poor 
old  Pug  was  never  tired  of  quoting  that  sublime  line : 
"  At  eventide  it  shall  be  light."  Woody,  whose  with- 
ered old  frame  seemed  to  have  in  it  something  of  the 
gnarled  and  knotted  fibre  of  the  oak  logs  sawn  from 
broken-up  ships  that  he  sold,  still  went  on  his  way  re- 
joicing. Never  a  member  of  the  mission — that  is  to 
say,  inscribed  on  its  books — he  nevertheless  came  and 
went  freely  and  much  more  frequently  than  anywhere 
else.  He  was  always  most  heartily  welcome,  for  he  al- 
ways brought  with  him  a  sense  of  power  that  lifted 
whatever  was  being  done  at  the  time  on  to  a  still  higher 
plane. 

But  these  reminiscences,  partaking,  as  many  may 
think,  of  the  nature  of  small-beer  chronicles,  must  be 
sternly  cut  short,  for  I  am  at  last  brought  butt  up 

349 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

against  the  necessity  of  telling  something  I  had  put 
off  as  long  as  possible.  That  I  should  have  left  it  to  the 
last  half  of  the  last  chapter  is  due  to  this  (as  I  think) 
natural  reluctance.  Why,  will  presently  be  seen. 

I  have  before  mentioned  that  Saul,  at  the  cost  of 
very  much  home  trouble,  persisted  manfully  in  his  con- 
nection with  the  mission,  giving  up  to  it  a  percentage 
of  his  time  as  he  did  of  his  money.  That  proportion, 
however,  could  certainly  not  with  any  reason  be  called 
a  large  one — say,  one  hour  on  Sunday  morning  for 
prayer-meeting,  two  hours  for  breaking  of  bread,  four 
hours  for  Sunday-evening  work  in  summer  and  two 
in  winter,  two  hours  on  Thursday,  and  one  on  Satur- 
day. Ten  hours  weekly  as  a  maximum.  It  must  be 
remembered,  too,  that  to  get  his  wife  to  come  with 
him  to  all  these  meetings,  Saul  would  have  cheerfully 
made  great  sacrifices.  That,  however,  she  would  not 
only  not  do,  but  by  every  artifice  that  cunning  could 
devise  or  fearless  unscrupulousness  carry  out,  she 
tried  to  prevent  him  from  going.  Occasionally  she 
would  burst  into  such  a  whirlwind  of  passion  just  as 
he  was  setting  out  for  the  meeting  that  he  felt  it  unwise 
to  go  and  leave  her,  and  he  had  the  miserable  alterna- 
tive of  sitting  at  home  listening  to  her  railing  at  all  the 
people  at  the  mission,  himself  principally. 

He  was  in  evil  case,  for  he  could  not  go  anywhere 
out  of  her  way.  A  weak  man  would  have  thrown  up 
the  struggle  and  gone  to  sea,  or  thrown  up  the  mis- 
sion and  gone  to  the  public-house.  Saul  did  neither. 
Occasionally,  invited  by  a  friend,  he  went  to  spend  a 
quiet  hour  at  some  happier  home  than  his  own,  but  his 
circle  of  friends  was  very  limited,  and  after  his  wife 
had  come  and,  in  vulgar  parlance,  kicked  up  a  row 
once  or  twice,  his  friends  fought  shy  of  his  company  at 

350 


And  Last 

home  for  fear  of  the  consequences.  Yet  all  this  only 
served  to  harden  his  moral  fibre,  to  stiffen  his  back, 
as  it  were,  while  his  tenderness  and  open-heartedness 
remained  as  before.  What  his  poor  wife  suffered  her- 
self will  never  be  known.  Sometimes  in  an  agony  of 
contrition  she  would  fling  herself  at  his  feet  and  im- 
plore his  forgiveness  for  the  way  she  was  treating 
him,  promise  vehemently  that  she  would  never,  never 
behave  so  again,  acknowledge  that  in  his  behaviour 
to  her  he  was  far,  far  too  good  to  her,  and  so  on.  But 
alas  for  her  spasmodic  repentance !  No  sooner  was  the 
ready  forgiveness  granted  and  peace  restored,  than  she 
seemed  as  if  she  was  on  the  alert  again  to  do  despite  to 
his  spirit. 

This  continual  conflict  was  wearing  in  the  extreme, 
and  Saul  aged  fast.  But  still  he  persisted  in  his  well- 
doing, although  a  keen  observer  might  have  noticed 
that  his  placid  demeanour  was  occasionally  disfigured 
by  a  growing  irritability  totally  unlike  what  he  had 
been  used  to  display  in  the  way  of  temper  to  the  world 
around  him.  At  last  he  went  to  one  of  the  dear  friends 
he  had  made,  a  man  of  deep  experience  of  the  human 
heart  and  widest  Christian  sympathies.  To  him  he  laid 
bare  his  trouble  and  begged  for  counsel,  confessing 
that  at  times  he  felt  as  if  he  must  break  out  into  fury 
and  beat  down  the  sneering  distorted  face  of  his  beau- 
tiful wife  when  she  was  in  one  of  her  mad  fits.  Only 
by  rushing  out  into  the  streets,  sometimes  at  strange 
hours  of  the  night,  had  he  been  able,  he  said,  to  save 
himself  from  breaking  down  and  doing  that  which 
would  be  a  lifelong  regret.  His  wife's  behaviour  to 
him  was  utterly  beyond  his  understanding.  Some- 
times he  thought  she  hated  him  virulently,  at  others  he 
felt  sure  that  she  loved  him  fondly.  For  himself,  he 

351 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

knew  that  his  love  was  being  slowly  worn  threadbare 
by  the  constant  persecution  of  the  tongue,  the  cease- 
less, causeless  hail  of  abuse  and  suspicion. 

His  friend  was  nonplussed,  apparently.  He  may 
have  had  his  suspicions  of  the  true  state  of  affairs,  but 
did  not,  of  course,  dare  mention  them.  All  he  could 
do  was  to  encourage  Saul  to  wait  and  pray,  and  believe 
that  sooner  or  later  in  His  own  good  time  this  dear  soul 
would  be  granted  him.  With  this  consolation  Saul  had 
perforce  to  be  content,  and  he  again  set  his  face  stead- 
fastly towards  the  duty  road.  A  little  hope  was  spring- 
ing up,  though.  Lizzie  was  about  to  become  a  mother, 
and  having  learned  by  the  experience  of  others  how 
changed  a  woman's  behaviour  often  becomes  at  this 
trying  time,  he  felt  that  perhaps  things  would  be  better 
when  the  little  one  was  born.  He  felt,  too,  that  it 
might  be  a  God-sent  link  to  bind  them  together  again, 
far  as  they  seemed  to  have  drifted  asunder  since  he 
left  the  sea.  So  he  took  courage,  was,  if  possible,  kinder 
and  more  forbearing  than  ever,  and  waited  with  all 
the  patience  he  could  borrow  from  the  Source  of  all 
patience  for  what  he  hoped  would  be  deliverance  for 
both  of  them. 

As  the  time  drew  near  Lizzie's  temper  grew  gradu- 
ally worse,  until  at  last  Saul  dared  not  go  to  the  meet- 
ings at  all.  She  was  so  violent  that  he  feared  she  would 
do  herself  a  mischief  if  he  did ;  it  never  occurred  to 
him  that  she  might  in  one  of  her  paroxysms  of  fury 
inflict  grievous  bodily  harm  upon  him,  though  that  was 
far  more  likely.  So  he  stayed  with  her  and  tried  to 
read  while  she  railed  upon  him  by  the  hour,  using 
every  taunt,  every  unkind  and  untrue  accusation  that 
her  fertile  imagination  suggested  to  her.  No  woman 
that  Saul  was  likely  to  have  the  smallest  acquaintance 

352 


And  Last 

with  was  left  with  a  shred  of  character ;  according  to 
her  diseased  mind  he  was  an  adulterous  villain  who 
lived  for  naught  else  but  sin  of  the  most  shameful 
kind.  Yet  she  knew  in  her  heart  that  there  had  never 
been  the  slightest  ground  for  suspicion  in  his  walk  and 
conversation. 

The  time  arrived,  and  Lizzie  lay  in  imminent  peril  of 
her  life.  She  was  perfectly  conscious  and  horribly 
afraid.  Like  a  great  black  curtain  the  cloud  of  self- 
deception  and  baseless  suspicion  she  had  raised  rolled 
up,  and  she  saw  what  she  had  done  to  this  long-suffer- 
ing, uncomplaining,  and  deeply  injured  husband  of 
hers.  She  felt  sure  that  she  was  going  to  die,  but 
could  not,  dared  not  without  making  amends  as  far 
as  lay  in  her  power.  So,  with  a  wail  like  that  of  a 
dying  animal,  she  turned  to  him  as  he  sat  praying  by 
her  bedside,  and  feebly  beckoned  his  head  down  to 
hers.  There,  hiding  her  face  in  the  pillow,  she  un- 
folded to  him  all  the  terrible  story  of  the  time  of  his 
long  absence,  making  no  excuse,  extenuating  nothing, 
but  setting  all  the  hideous  facts  fully  forth.  And  then, 
as  he  listened  with  ghastly  face  (he,  the  utterly  unsus- 
picious man)  to  this  heart-emptying,  she  implored  him 
to  forgive  her.  Is  it  to  be  wondered  at  that  this  sorely 
stricken  man  remained  for  a  long  time  utterly  silent,  as 
if  stone  deaf  to  her  agonized  pleadings  ? 

But  light  came  to  him  at  last,  and  putting  both  his 
arms  round  her  neck  he  said :  "  My  poor,  helpless 
darlin',  of  course  I  forgive  you.  Who  am  I  that  I 
should  want  to  keep  from  you  that  mercy  which  God's 
long  ago  given  you  ?  And  may  God  in  his  mercy  raise 
you  up  again,  so  that  we  may  begin  life  afresh,  and 
walk  together  hand  in  hand  in  the  way  he'd  have  us 
go."  Peaceful,  happy  tears  rolled  down  her  wan  face, 

353 


The  Apostles  of  the  Southeast 

and  holding  her  hand  in  his  she  slept.  The  danger 
passed  away,  and,  the  happy  mother  of  a  beautiful  boy, 
she  was  soon  about  again,  a  veritable  sunbeam  in  the 
house.  Very  beautiful,  very  touching  was  her  devo- 
tion to  her  husband.  Occasionally  she  would  forget 
and  break  out  into  sharp  words  ;  occasionally  she  would 
allow  herself  to  speak  uncharitably  of  those  about 
whose  motives  and  of  whose  services  she  could  not 
know  very  much.  But  that  is  only  saying  that  she  was, 
like  all  the  rest  of  us,  not  yet  made  perfect. 

Years  have  passed  away,  but  Saul  and  his  wife, 
hand  in  hand,  are  still  treading  the  way  of  righteous- 
ness. Their  dark  secret  is  known  but  to  themselves, 
and  hidden  away  deep  in  the  recesses  of  their  hearts. 
It  keeps  them  both  very  humble,  makes  them  both 
very  kind;  but,  strange  as  it  may  appear,  when  any 
flagrant  case  of  the  misconduct  of  married  people 
comes  before  them,  Saul  is  always  the  more  merciful 
of  the  two. 

Here  we  must  leave  them,  still  plodding  along 
peacefully  and  patiently  in  the  work  of  the  mission,  still 
doing  that  which  they  believe  to  be  the  will  of  God, 
in  a  quiet  and  unostentatious  manner;  poor  as  re- 
gards what  the  world  values,  but  rich  in  the  love  and 
ever-growing  esteem  each  has  for  the  other.  A  family 
is  growing  up  around  them,  youngsters  whom  they 
fondly  hope  will  in  God's  own  good  time  take  their 
places,  and  take  up  their  work  as  another  generation  of 
the  Apostles  of  the  Southeast. 


THE    END 


354 


A  STORY  OF  THE  PEOPLE'S  POWER. 

The  Eternal  City. 

By  HALL  CAINE,  author  of  "The  Christian,"  "The 
Manxman,"  "The  Bondman,"  "The  Deemster," 
etc.  I2mo.  Cloth,  $1.50. 

"A  vivid  and  moving  picture  of  Roman  life." — Pittsburg 
Commercial  Gazette. 

"Bound  to  exercise  a  great  influence  in  the  controversies  now 
exciting  the  world." — St.  Louis  Post-Dispatch. 

"  One  of  the  very  strongest  productions  in  fiction  that  the 
present  age  has  been  privileged  to  enjoy." — Philadelphia  Item. 

"The  most  ambitious  work  the  author  has  so  far  undertaken, 
and  may  be  regarded  his  greatest  success." — Cleveland  Plain- 
Dealer. 

"A  powerful  novel,  inspired  by  a  lofty  conception,  and 
carried  out  with  unusual  force.  It  is  the  greatest  thing  that  Hall 
Caine  has  ever  attempted." — Brooklyn  Eagle. 

"  The  praise  of  the  great  men  of  letters — Ruskin,  Collins, 
Blackmore,  Gladstone — who  hailed  with  delight  the  advent  of 
'  The  Deemster  '  and  '  The  Bondman,'  should  now  be  readjusted 
to  meet  present  exigencies,  for  Mr.  Hall  Caine  has  done  for  the 
myriads  of  his  English  readers  what  Walpole  did  for  a  smaller  yet 
not  less  discriminating  public.  .  .  .  The  true  Italian  spirit  of 
Onuphrio  Muralto  we  find  revived  after  many  years  in  '  The 
Eternal  City.'  " — New  York  Times  Saturday  Review. 

D.   APPLETON  AND  COMPANY,   NEW  YORK. 


BY  CYRUS  TQWNSEND  BRADY. 

Commodore  Paul  Jones. 
A  new  volume  in  the  GREAT  COMMANDERS 
SERIES,  edited  by  General  JAMES  GRANT  WILSON. 
With   Photogravure   Portrait   and   Maps.      I2mo. 
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"It  has  the  interest  of  an  absorbing  romance." — New  York  Commercial 
Ad-verthcr. 

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"Mr.  Brady's  vigorous  style,  vivid  imagination,  and  dramatic  force  are 
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"  Mr.  Brady's  book  shows  great  study  and  care,  and  brings  out  many  new 
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"  No  better  biographer  than  Mr.  Brady  could  have  been  found  for  the  first 
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is  one  to  buy  and  own.  It  is  more  interesting  than  any  novel,  and  better  written 
than  most  histories." — Nautical  Gazette. 

Reuben  James. 

A  Hero  of  the  Forecastle.  A  new  volume  in  the 
YOUNG  HEROES  OF  OUR  NAVY  SE- 
RIES. Illustrated  by  George  Gibbs  and  Others. 
i2mo.  Cloth,  $1.00. 

"A  lively  and  spirited  narrative." — Boston  Herald. 
"An  entertaining  and  patriotic  study." — Newport  News. 

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those  brilliant  and  forceful  descriptions  of  the  glories  of  the  old  wooden  walled 
navy,  which  stir  the  blood  like  a  trumpet  call." — Brooklyn  Eagle. 

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By    MAARTEN   MAARTENS. 


Each,  J2mo,  cloth,  $J.50.    Uniform  Edition, 

Some  Women  I  have  Known. 

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Her  Memory.     With  Photogravure  Portrait. 

"  Maarten  Maartens  took  us  all  by  storm  some  time  ago  with 
his  fine  story  christened  '  God's  Fool.'  He  established  himself 
at  once  in  our  affections  as  a  unique  creature  who  had  something 
to  say  and  knew  how  to  say  it  in  the  most  fascinating  way.  He  is 
a  serious  story  writer,  who  sprang  into  prominence  when  he  first 
put  his  pen  to  paper,  and  who  has  ever  since  kept  his  work  up  to 
the  standard  of  excellence  which  he  raised  in  the  beginning." — 
New  York  Herald. 

The  Greater  Glory.     A  Story  of  High  Life. 

"It  would  take  several  columns  to  give  any  adequate  idea  of 
the  superb  way  in  which  the  Dutch  novelist  has  developed  his 
theme  and  wrought  out  one  of  the  most  impressive  stories  of  the 
period.  ...  It  belongs  to  the  small  class  of  novels  which  one 
can  not  afford  to  neglect." — San  Francisco  Chronicle. 

God's  Fool. 

"Throughout  there  is  an  epigrammatic  force  which  would 
make  palatable  a  less  interesting  story  of  human  lives  or  one  less 
deftly  told." — London  Saturday  Review. 

Joost  Avelingh. 

"  Aside  from  the  masterly  handling  of  the  principal  characters 
•and  general  interest  in  the  story,  the  series  of  pictures  of  Dutch 
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Herald. 


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A  PICTURESQUE  BOOK  OF  THE  SEA. 

A  Sailor's  Log. 

Recollections  of  Forty  Tears  of  Naval  Life.  By  Rear- 
Admiral  ROBLEY  D.  EVANS,  U.  S.  N.  Illustrated. 
Large  I2mo.  Cloth,  $2.00. 

"It  is  essentially  a  book  for  men,  young  and  old  ;  and  the 
man  who  does  not  enjoy  it  is  lacking  in  healthy  red  blood." — 
Chicago  Bookseller. 

•"A  profoundly  interesting  book.  There  is  not  a  line  of  bra- 
vado in  its  chapters,  nor  a  carping  criticism.  It  is  a  book  which 
will  increase  the  esteem  and  high  honor  which  the  American  feels 
and  willingly  awards  our  naval  heroes." — Chicago  Inter-Ocean. 

"It  would  be  difficult  to  find  an  autobiography  possessing 
more  interest  than  this  narrative  of  forty  years  of  active  naval  serv- 
ice. It  equals  the  most  fascinating  novel  for  interest ;  it  contains 
a  great  deal  of  material  that  has  a  distinct  historical  value.  .  .  . 
Altogether  it  is  a  mosr  delightful  book. "— Brooklyn  Eagle. 

"  His  is  a  picturesque  personality,  and  he  stands  the  supreme 
test  by  being  as  popular  with  his  officers  and  men  as  he  is  with 
the  public  generally.  His  life  has  been  one  of  action  and  adven- 
ture since  he  was  a  boy,  and  the  record  of  it  which  he  has  pre- 
pared in  his  book  'A  Sailor's  Log'  has  not  a  dull  line  in  it  from 
cover  to  cover.  It  is  all  action,  action,  and  again  action  from  the 
first  page  to  the  last,  and  makes  one  want  to  go  and  '  do  things  ' 
himself.  Any  boy  between  fifteen  and  nineteen  who  reads  this 
book  and  does  not  want  to  go  to  sea  must  be  a  sluggish  youth. 
.  .  .  The  book  is  really  an  interesting  record  of  an  interesting 
man." — New  York  Press. 

D.   APPLETON  AND  COMPANY,   NEW  YORK. 


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